Vivekachudamani of Sri Sankaracharya [microform] : text, with English translation, notes and an index

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VIVEKA - CHUDAMANI

OF

SRI SANKARACHARYA

HKEHY N

iRARY I

VERSITY OF I
^LffORNIA/

\

Himalayan Scries So. XL! II.

VIYEKAGHUDAMANI

OF

SRI SANKARACHARYA

Text with English Translation, Notes
and an Index,

BY
SWAMI MADHAVANANDA.

• ■.;.^. A

THE ADVAITA A5HRAMA, MAYAVATI,
Dt. Almora, Himalayas.

1921

All righlb received, j [ i'lice Rs. T>vo,

Published by Swaml Madhavaoaada, Presldeatf
Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati.

Printed by Mohan Lai Sah Chowdhary

at the Prabuddha Bharata Press, Mayavati,

Dt. Almora.

b 133

S39I/53

nil

FOREWORD

Scarcely any introductiou is needed for
a book that professes to be, as its title-7~
'Crest-jewel of Discrimination ' — shows, a
masterpiece on Advaita V^edanta, the
cardinal tenet of which is: Wp ^ "if^^fi^^^JT
Sftfr ar|r^ ^TTT^:— 'Brahman alone is real, tlie
universe is unreal and the individual soul
is no other than the Universal Soul.'
Being an original production of Sankara's
genius, the book combines with a search-
ing analysis of our experience an authori-
tativencss and a depth of sincerity that
at once carry conviction into the heart of
its readers. The whole book is instinct
with the prophetic vision of a Seer, a
man of Realisation, and the expression,
too, is so lucid and poetical that quite a
new life has been breathed into the dry
bones of philosophical discussion, and
that, too, on the most abstruse subject
ever known.

In preparing this edition, which is a
reprint in book -form ti om the Piabuddh'i

r. 803

[ ii ]

Bhaiata, the translator gratefully ac-
knowledges his indebtedness to the ad-
mirable Sanskrit commentary of Swami
Kesavacharya of the Munimandal, Kan-
khal, which along with the Hindi trans-
lation wonld be highly useful to those who
want a fuller knowledge of this book.

For facility of reference an Index has
been added, and the book, it is hoped,
will in its present form be a vade-mecum
to. all students of Advaita: Philosophy^

M.

ViVekAchudAmani.

^^%?TfriftT^rf?rnr^'f ?m'TT^':fl[ i

•v, r^

I. I bow to Govinda, whose nature is Bliss
Supreme, who is the Sadguru, who can be
known only from the import of all Vedanta,
and who is beyond the reach of speech and
mind.

['Viveka' means discrimination, ' Chuda ' is
crest, and * Man i," jewel. Hence the title means
* Crest-jewel of discrimination.' Just as the jewel
on the crest of a diadem is the most conspicuous
ornament on a person's body, so the present
treatise is a masterpiece among works treating of
discrimination between the Real and the unreal.

In this opening stanza salutation is made to
God ( Govinda), or to the Guru, in his absolute
aspect. It may be interesting to note that the
name of Sankara's Guru was Govindapada, and the
Sloka is ingeniously composed so as to admit of
both interpretations.

Sadgiirii — lit. the highly qualified preceptor, and
may refer either to Sankara's own Guru or to God
Himself, who is the Guru of Gurus. ]

A

2 VIVEKACHUDAMAWI

2. Foff all bemgs a huma?!!i birth is di&
cult to obtain, more so is- a ma^ie body,,
rarer thai5 that is Brahmmhood, rarer still is
the attaGhment! to tfee path of ¥edic religion ;
higher than thiis is eruditioft in the Scriptures ;
discrimination between the Self and not-
Self, Realisation, and co-ntia'oing in a state o£
identity with Brahm^n^ — these come next ini
order. ( This kind of ) Mukts m not to be
attained except throisgh the weU-earnecS
merits of a hundred crore of births,

3. There are three things whkh are ra? e in^
deed and are d»e to the grace of God — namely^
a human birth^ the longjng for Liberation^
and the protecting care of a perfected sage,

4. The man who having by some mear^
obtained a human birth, with a male body

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 3-

and mastery of the Vcdas to boot, is
foolish enough not to exert for self-liberation,
verily commits suicide, for he kills himself by
clinging to things unreal.

5. What greater fool is there than the
man who having obtained a rare human body,
and a masculine body too, neglects to
achieve the real end of this life.

[ The real end &c.—v\z. Liberation. ]

^^ 'inmiir *r^^ ^^^- '

6. Let people quote scriptures and sacri-
fice to the gods, let them perform rituals and
worship the deities, there is no Liberation for
anyone without the realisation of one's identity
with the Atman, no, not even in the lifetime
of a hundred Brahmas put together.

[ Lifetime &c. — i. e., an indefinite length of time.
One day of Brahma ( the Creator ) is equivalent to
432 million years of human computation, which is
supposed to be the duration of the world. ]

*^ ^cT TfT „.

^Tfar m^T^t g%t^^ ^z ?m: iivsii

4 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

7. There is no hope of Immortah'ty by
means of riches — such indeed is the declara-
tion of the Vedas. Hence it is clear that works
cannot be the cause of Liberation.

[The reference is to Yajnavalkya's words to his
wife Maitreyi, Brihadaranyaka Il.iv. 2. Cf. the Vedic

dictum, ^ ^T{w T srsrarviT^^r ^»r%% ^^^dr^^rr^ir:—

'Neither by rituals, nor progeny, nor by riches, but
by- renunciation alone some attained immortality. }

8. Therefore the man of learning should
strive his best for Liberation, having re-
nounced his desire for pleasures from external
objects, duly approaching a good and generous
preceptor, and fixing his mind on the truth
inculcated by him.

[ Duly — i. e. according to the prescribed mode.
(Vide Mundaka I. ii. 12). The characteristics of
a qualified Guru are given later on in sloka 33. ]

^rnT^5"c^^TOT^ ^T^75;:S;i[{^g?Tr 115.11

9. Having attained the Yogarudha state,
one should recover oneself, immersed in the
sea of birth and death, by means of devotion
to right discrimination.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 5

[ Vogdrudha state — Described in Gita VI. 4. —
'''When one is attached neither to sense-objects
nor to actions, and has given up all desires, then
he is said to be Yogdrudha or to have ascended
the Yoga-path." ]

^^cTT qft^lw^Rm^mn ^^1%^: II? oil

10. Let the wise and erudite man, having
commenced the practice of the reah'sation of
the Atman, give up all works and try to
cut loose the bonds of birth and death.

S^All works — only Sakdma-Karma or works per-
formed with a view to gaining more sense-enjoy-
ment are meant, not selfless work. ] ^^

'' *i(il" Work is for the purification of the
mind, not for the perception of the reality.
The realisation of Truth is brought about by
discrimination and not in the least by ten
millions of acts.

r [The idea is, that works properly done cleanse the
-s mind of its impurities, /when the Truth flashes of
C itself. ] vX

f VIVEKACHUDAMANI

12. By adequate reasoning the convicti©n
of the reality about the rope is gained, which
puts an end to the great fear and misery
caused by the snake worked up in the deluded
mind.

[ Reality of the rope — i. e. that it is a rope and
not a snake, for which it was mistaken. ]

13. The conviction of the Truth is seen to
proceed from reasoning upon the salutary
counsel of the wise, and not by bathing in
the sacred waters, nor by gifts, nor by
hundreds of Pranayamas,

\_The wise — men of realisation. ]

14. Success depends essentially on a quali-
fied aspirant, and time, place and such other
means are but auxiliaries in this regard.

[The qualifications will be enumerated in
stanzas 1 6 and 17.]

15. Hence the seeker after the Reality of
the Atman should take to reasoning, after

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 7

dtjly approaching the Guru — who should be
the best of the kiKJwers of Brahman, aod an
ocean of inercy„

16. The intelligent and learned man
■skilled in arguing in favour of the Scriptures
and refutirjg -counter-arguments against them,
— one who has got the above characteristics is
the fit recipient of the knowledge of the
Atman.

17. The man of discrimination between
the Real and the unreal, whose mind is turned
away from the unreal, who possesses calmness
and the allied virtues, and Is longing for
Liberation, is alone co«sidered qualified to
inquire after Brahman.

^ ^c^^ ^ftcgr ^T^^r% n %3?ri% M?^il

18. Regarding this, sages have spoken of
four means of attainment, which alone being
present, the devotion to Brahman succeeds,
and ia the absence of which, it fails.

8 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

19. First is enumerated the discrimination

i between the Real and the unreal, next comes

*2_ the aversion to the enjoyment of fruits ( of

one's actions ) here and hereafter, ( next is )

J the group of six attributes, viz., calmness and

t^ the rest, and ( last ) is clearly the yearning

for Liberation.

Sim ^^ ^nr%^$^^^qt f%R^^: I

20 A firm conviction of the mind to the
effect that Brahman is real and the universe
unreal, is designated as the discrimination
(Viveka) between the real and the unreal.

21. Vairagya or renunciation is the desire
to give up all transitory enjoyments (ranging)
from those of an ( animate ) body to those of
Brahmahood, ( having already known their
defects ) from observation, instruction and so
forth.

[From those ,Brahmdhoed.'^'^i2,\imi is the

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 9

highest beinjr in the scale of relative existence.
The seeker after Freedom has to transcend this
scale, undetained by enjoyments implying subject-
object relation, and realise his Self as Existence-
Knowledge-Bliss Absolute.

Having already known etc.— ^i^^ST^xiirf^f^J may
also be rendered as, *' (the giving up being effected)
through all the enjoying organs and faculties." ]

f^?:^^ fir^^afmif [^^^=5TT 5151* i

22. The resting of the mind steadfastly
on its Goal ( viz. Brahman ) after having
detached itselfCfrom the manifold of sense-
objects by continually observing their defects,
is called Sama or calmness.

LV^

23. Turning both kinds of sense-organs
away from sense-objects and placing them in
their respective centres is called Dama or
self-control. The best Uparati or self-with-
drawal consists in the mind-function ceasing
to act by means of external objects.

[ Bofh kinds of organs— \\z. The organs oi
knoNvledge and those of action. ]

10 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

24. The bearing of all afflictions without
caring to redress them, being free ( at the
same time ) from anxiety or lament on their
score, is called Titiksha or forbearance.

25. Acceptance by firm judgment of the
mind as true of what the scriptures and the

-- >-^ Guru instruct, is called by the sages Sraddha

or faith, by means of which the Reality is
perceived.

[ Acceptance by firin judgment etc. — Not to be
confused with what is generally called blind accep-
tance. The whole mind must attain to that perfect
state of assured reliance on the truth of instruc-
tions received, without which a whole-hearted, one-
pointed practice of those instructions is not
possible. ]

V 26. Not the mere indulgence of thought
( in cujjosity ) but the constant concentration
of the intellect ( or the affirming faculty ) ou

VIVEKACHUDAMANI ^7j

the ever-pure Brahman is what is called
Saraadhdna or self-settledness.

[ Not the mere indulgence etc-^hat is, not the
mere intellectual or philosophical satisfaction in
thinking of or studying the Truth. jj The intellect
must be sought to be resolved into the higher
activity of concentration on the Truth. ]

27. Mumukshuta or yearning for freedom
is the desire to free oneself, by realising one's
true nature, from all bondages from that of
egoism to that of the body,— bondages super-
imposed by Ignorance.

5y^5f 3d: ^5!f sTf ;8rT ^^% ^«i: ii^'==ii

28. Even though torpid or mediocre, this
yearning for freedom, through the grace of the
Guru, may bear fruit ( being developed ) by
means of Vairagya ( renunciation ), Sama
( calmness ), and so on.

29. In his case verily whose renunciation
and yearning for freedom are intense, calm-

I? VIVEKACHUDAMANI

ness and the other practices have ( really )
their meaning and bear fruit.

30. Where ( however ) this renunciation
and yearning for freedom are torpid, there
calmness and the other practices are as mere
appearances, like water in a desert !

[ Mere appeaf-ances etc. — i. e. they are without
any stability and may vanish like the mirage any
time, ^ox without burning renunciation and desire
for Freedom, the other practices may be swept off
^\\ J by a strong impulse of fg^ or some strong bhnd
attachment. ] )

^N »^,

31. Among things conducive to Liberation,
Devotion (Bhakti ) alone holds the supreme
place. The seeking after one's real nature is
designated as Devotion.

[ The seeking etc. — This definition is from the
Advaita standpoint. Dualists who substitute Isvara,
the Supreme Lord, for the Atman or Supreme Self
immanent in being, of course define Bhakti other-
wise. For example, Narada defines it as gr ^^r%^
M^MMH^TT — " It is of the nature of extreme love
to some Being," and Sandilya, another authority

VIVEKAOnUDAMANI 13

on the subject, puts it as m qTT^^FFO^— " It is
extreme attachment to Isvara, ihe Lord." On
reflection it will appear that there is not much dif-
ference between the definitions of the two schools.]

32-. Others maintain that the inquiry into
the truth of one's own Self is Devotion.
The inquirer about the truth of the Atman
who is possessed of the above-mentioned
means of attainment should approach a wise
preceptor, who confers emancipation from
bondage ;

[ Truth of one's own self ^c. — This is simply
putting the statement of the previous Sloka in
another way, for we are the Atman in reality,
though ignorance has veiled the truth from us.

Ahove-vie7itioned — i. e. in Slokas 19 and 31. ]

•^ rv

33. Who is versed in the Vedas, sinless,

unsmitten by desire and a knower of Brahman

par excellence, who has withdrawn himself

^ into Brahman,(^calm, like fire that has con-

sumed its fueMwho is a boundless reservoir of

14 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

mercy that knows no reason, and a friend of
all good people who prostrate themselves be-
fore him ; —

{Fire..... fuel. — Cf. Svetasvatara, VI. 19. The state
of mergence in Brahman, and( the perfect cessa-
tion of all activity of the relative plane is meant.^

The Sloka is an adaptation of the language of
Srutis. ]

34. Worshipping that Guru with devotion,
and approaching him, when he is pleased
with prostration, humility and service, (he)
should ask him what he has got to know : —

3$. O Master, O friend of those that bow
to thee, thou ocean of mercy, I bow to thee ;
save me, fallen as I am into this sea of birth
and death, with a straightforward glance of
thine eye, which sheds nectar-like grace
supreme.

[ The expression, abounding in hyperbole, is
characteristically Oriental. The meaning is quite
plain. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I J

36. Save me from death, afflicted as I am
by the unquenchable fire of this world-forest^
and shaken violently by the winds of ai> un-
toward lot, terrified and ( so ) seeking refuge
in thee, for I do not know of any other man
with whom to seek shelter.

[ Forest-fire &c. — The world ( Samsdra ) \%
commonly compared to a wilderness on fire. The

physical and mental torments are referred to.

Untoward lot — the aggregate of bad deeds done
in one's past incarnations, which bring on the evils
of the present life. ]

37. There are good souls, calm and
magnanimous, who do good to others as does
the spring, and who having themselves crossed
this dreadful ocean of birth and death, help
others also to cross the same, without any
motive whatsoever.

l6 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

[ Do good spring — i. e. unasked, out of their

heart's bounty, as the spring infuses new life into
animate and inanimate nature, unobserved and un-
sought. The next Sloka follows up the idea. ]

sT^rrnTcTHm^RT f^m Rf^ ll^^ll

38. It is the very nature of the magnani-
mous to move of their own accord towards
removing others' troubles. Here, for instance,
is the moon who, as everybody knows, volun-
tarily saves the earth parched by the flaming
rays of the sun.

HiTR?5:T:^T3^RT^T^Ir: 'jl': ^^fr^t^-
g^?T§[r^^5aTi^>=F;l: ^Rf^^^W^T'5^: ^=^^ I

39. O Lord, with thy nectar-like
speech, sweetened by the enjoyment of the
elixir-like bliss of Brahman, pure, cooling
to a degree, issuing in streams from thy
lips as from a pitcher, and delightful to the
ear, — do thou sprinkle me who am tor-
mented by worldly afflictions as by the

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 17

tongues of a forest-fire. Blessed are those
on whom even a passing glance of thine
eye lights, accepting them as thine own.

[ Stripped of metaphor the Sloka would mean :
Take pity on me and teach me the way ont of this
world and its afflictions. ]

•s * rv "^ •

40. How to cross this ocean of phe-
nomenal existence, what is to be my fate,
and which of the means should I adopt: —
as to these I know nothing. Condescend
to save me, O Lord, and describe at length
how to put an end to the misery of this
relative existence.

[ Which of the means'. Among the various and
often conflicting means prescribed in the Shastras,
which am I to adopt ? ]

41. As he thus speaks, tormented by
the afflictions of the world — which is like

B

iS VIVEKACHUDAMANI

a forest on fire — and seeking his protec--
tion, the saint eyes him with a glance
softened with pity and spontaneously bidj.
him give up all fear,

42. To him who has sought his pr De-
tection, thirsting for liberation, who duly
obeys the injunctions of the scriptures,,
who is of a pacified mind, and endowed
v/ith calmness, — (to such a one) the sage
proceeds to inculcate the truth out of
sheer grace:

[ This verse is an adaptation of Mundaka Upa.
L ii. 13.

To him who &€. — The adjectives imply that
he is a qualified aspirant. ]

ITT ^^ f^t^^^ ?rr^^TT^'.

43. Fear not, O learned one, there is
no death for thee; there is a means of
crossing this sea of relative existence ; that

VIVE'KACHUDAMANI 19

very way by which sages have gone beyond
it, I shall inculcate to thee.

44. There is a sovereign means which
puts an end to the fear of relative existence ;
through that thou wilt cross the sea of
Samsara and attain bliss supreme.

45. Reasoning on the meaning of the
Vedanta leads to efficient knowledge, which
is immediately followed by the total
annihilation of the misery born of relative
existence.

[ Efficient hiowledge — the highest knowledge,
which consists of the realisation of the identity of
the individual soul with Brahman. ]

46. Faith, devotion and the Yoga of
meditation — these are mentioned by the
Sruti as the immediate factors of Libera'tion

20 VlVEKACmJDAMANI

in the case of a seeker; whoever abides in
these, gets Liberation from the bondage of
the body, which is the conjuring of
Ignorance.

[ The reference is to Kaivalya Upanishad i. 2.

Faith — Shraddha, Devotion — Bhakti. These have
been defined in Slokas 25 and 31, 32.

Bondage of the body — i. e. the identification of
the Self with the body, which is solely due to
Ignorance or Avidya. ]

47. It is verily through the touch of
Ignorance that thou who art the Supreme
Self, findest thyself under the bondage of
non-Self, whence alone proceeds the round
of births and deaths. The 'fire of knowl-
edge, kindled by the discrimination be-
tween these two, burns up the effects of
Ignorance together with their root.

48. The disciple said; Condescend to
listen, 0 Master, to the question I am

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 2*1

putting (to thee) ; I shall l)e gratified to
hear a reply to the same from thy lips.

49. What is Bondage, forsooth? How
has it c^ne (upon the Self) ? How does
it continue to exist? How is one free^
from it? Who is this non-Self? And who
is the Supreme Self? And how can one
discriminate between them? — Do tell me
about all these.

50. The Guru replied: Blessed art
thou! Thou hast achieved thy life's end
and hast sanctified thy family, that thou
wishest to attain Brahmanhood by getting
free from the bondage of Ignorance !

51. A father has got his sons and
others to free him from his debts, but he

22 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

l;as got none but himself to remove his
bondage.

[ In this and the next few Slokas the necessity
of direct realisation is emphasised as the only
means of removing Ignorance. ]

52. The trouble such as that caused by
a load on the head can be removed by
others, but none but one's own self can put
a stop to the pain which is caused by
hunger and the like.

53. The patient who takes (the proper)
diet and medicine is alone seen to recover
completely, — not through work done by
others.

54. The true nature of things is to be
known personally^ through the eye of clear
illumination, and not through a sage:
what the moon exactly is, is to be known

VIVEKACKUDAMANI 23

•with one's own eyes; can others make
hi SI know it?

55. Who but one's own self can get
rid of the bondage caused by the fetters of
Ignorance, desire, action and the like,
aye, even in a hundred crore of cycles?

[ JgnoraJise of our real nature as the blissful
Self leads to desire, which in its turn impels us to
actio?i, entailing countless sufferings.

Cycle — Kalpa, the entire duration of the evolved
universe. See note on Sloka 6. ]

V ♦v

56. Neither by Yoga, nor by Sankhya,
nor .by work, nor by learning., but by the
realisation of one's identity with Brah-
man is Liberation possible, and by no
ether means.

[ None of these, if practised mecliankaUy, will
bring on the highest knowledge — the absolute
identity of the }iva and Brahman — which alone,
according to Advaita Vedanta, is the supreme way
to liberation.

* Yoga ' may mean Hathayoga which s^engthens
die body.

According to the Sankhya philosophy liberation

24 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

is achieved by the discrimination botween Parnsha
and Frakriti. The Purusha is sentient but inactive,
and all activity belongs to Frakriti, which is
non-sentient, yet independent of the Purusha. The
Sankh.yas also believe in a plurality of Purushas,
These are the main differences betvyeen the
Sankhya and Vedanta philosophies.

Work — Work for material ends, such as getting
to heaven and so forth, is meant.

\y^ Compare Svetasvatara Upa. III. 8. — * Seeing Him
V J/L. alone one transcends death, there is no other way.']

57. The beauty of a guitar's form and
the skill of playing on its chords serve
merely to please same persons, they do not
suffice to confer sovereignty.

58. Loud speech consisting of a shower
of words, the skill in expounding Scriptures »
and Kkewise erudition — these merely bring,
on a little personal enjoyment to the
schol'ar but are no good for Liberation.

[ Book-learning to the exclusion of realisation is-
deprecated in this and the following Slokas.

Loud speech. — Speech is divided into four kinds
according to its degree of subtlety. Vaikhari is.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 25

the lowest class, and represents articulate speech.
Hence, dabbling in mere terminology is meant.]

59. The study of Scriptures is useless
as long as the highest Truth is unknown,
and it is equally useless when the high^est
Truth has already been known.

[ Prior to realisation, mere book-learning with-
out Discrimination and Renunciation is useless
as it cannot give us Freedom, and to the man of
realisation, it is all the more so, as he has already
achieved his life's end. ]

• rv

60. The Scriptures consisting of many
words are a dense forest which causes the
mind to ramble merely. Hence the man of
wisdom should earnestly set about knowing
the true nature of the Self.

61. For one who has been bitten by the
serpent of Ignorance the only remedy is
the knowledge of Bra'hman; of what avail
are the Vedas and Scriptures, Mantras and
medicines to such a one ?

26 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

62. A disease does not leave off if one
simply utter the name of the medicine,
without taking it; (similarly) without
direct realisation one cannot be liberated
by the mere utterance of the word Brah-
man.

63. Without causing the objective uni-
verse to vanish and without knowing the
truth- of (the self, how is one to achieve
liberation by the mere utterance of the
word Brahman?— -it would result merely
in an effort of speech.

[ Without causing... vanish. — By realising one's

identity with Brahman, the one without a second^

f in Samadhi, one becomes the pure Chit (knowledge

i absolute), and the duality of subject and object

vanishes altogether. Short of this, ignorance which

is the cause of all evil is not destroyed. ]

64. Without killing one's enemies, and
possessing oneself of the splendour of the
entire surrounding region one cannot claim

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 2/

to be an emperor by merely saying, 'I am
an emperor.'

65. As a treasure hidden underground
requires (for its extraction) competent
instruction, excavation, the removal of
stones and such other things lying above
it and (finally) grasping, but never comes
out by being (merely) called out by name,
so the transparent Truth of the Self, which
is hidden by Maya and its effects, is to be
attained through the instructions of a
knower of Brahman, followed by reflexion,
meditation and so forth, but not through
perverted argumentations.

[ Nikshepah — something remaining hidden. The
idea is — one must undergo the necessary practice.]

66. Therefore the wise should, as in
the case of disease and the like, personally
strive by all the means in their power te
be free from the bondage of repeated births
and deaths.

23 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

g;5r5fT^r ^'jsr^rt ^Tct^^t;^ gg^nr: \K^\\

67. The question that you have asked
to-day is excellent, approved by those
versed in the Shastras, aphoristic, preg-
nant with meaning and fit to be known by
the seekers after Liberation.

[ Aphoristic — terse and pithy.]

68. Listen attentively, O learned one,
to what I am going to say. By listening
to it you shall be instantly free from the
bondage of Samsara.

69. The first step to Liberation is the
extreme aversion to all perishable things,
then follow calmness, self-control, for-
bearance, and the utter relinquishment of
all work enjoined in the Scriptures.

[ Aversion, calmness ^/r.— These four have been
definecf in Slokas 20—24.. Cf. Srmi— HTF^ ^RT

VIVEKAGHU'DAMANI 29

All work : all work done with moti-ve, including
the good ones prescribed in the Shastras and those
that are evil — which men do prompted by their
own nature. ]

70. Then come hearing, reflection on
that, and long, constant and unbroken
meditation, for the Muni. After that the
learned one attains the supreme Nirvikalpa
state and realises the bliss of Nirvana even
in this life.

[ Compare Bri. Upa. II. iv. 5.

Hearing — of the Truth from the lips of the Guru.

Meditation — the flowing of the mind in one un-
broken stream towards one object. ^

Mjmi — the man of reflection.

Nirvikalpa state — that state of the mind in which
there is no distinction between subject and object —
fall the mental activities are held in suspension,/
and the aspirant is one with his Atman.) It is a
- superconscious _state, bej^ond all relatjvity, which *
\ can \)Q/elt by the fortunate seeker, but cannot be
j described in words.) The utmost that can be said
of it is that it is inexpressible Bliss, and Pure
Consciousness. Nirvana, which literally means
' blown out,' is another name for this. ]

30 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

71. Now I am going to tell you fully
about what you ought to know — the dis-
crimination between the Self and non-Self.
Listen to it and decide about it in your
mind.

72. , Composed of the seven ingredients
viz., marrow, bones, fat, flesh, blood, skin,
and cuticle, and consisting of the follow-
ing limbs and their parts — legs., thighs
the chest, arms, the back, and the head —

»\ rs rs • rv_»

73. — This body, reputed to be the
abode of the infatuation of ' I and mine,'
is designated by sages as the gross body.
The sky, air, fire, water and earth are
subtle elements. They —

[ The sky^ air etc, — These are the materials out

VIVEKACHUDAMANr JC

of which the gross body has been formed. They
have got two slates, one subtle and the other gross.]

74. Being united with parts of one
another and becoming gross (they) form
the gross body. And their subtle essences
form sense-objects — the groups of five
such as sound and the rest which conduce
to the happiness of the experiencer, the
individual soul.

[ Being united ^c, — The process is as follows :
Each of the five elements is divided into two parts,
one of the two halves is further divided into four
parts. Then each gross element is formed by
the union of one-half of itself with one-eighth of
each of the other four.

Subtle essences — Tanmdtrds.

Form sense-ohjects — by being received by the
sense-organs.

Soimd and ike r^j/— sound, touch, smell, taste
and sight.

Happiness &c. — Happiness includes its opposite,
— misery also. ]

32 V'lVEKACHUDAMANI

iRmf?cT fsrqr?^^ ^f'S^-

5E^^^f^^ ^^5r #r&T: llvsv^ll

75. Those fools who are tied to these
sense-objects by the stout cord of attach-
ment, so very difficult to snap, come and
depart, up and down, carried amain by the
powerful emissary of one's own action.

[ Come and depart &c. — Become sabject to
t>irth and death and assume various bodies from
those of angels to those of brutes, according t© the
merits of their work.

Powerful emissary &c. — Just as culprit seizing
things not belonging to him is put in fetters and
sentenced by the royal affair in various ways, so
the Jiva, oblivious of his real nature, through his
attachment to sense-object is subjected to various
kinds of misery. ]

^c^rf^nr: q^w:^ q^

76. The deer, the elephant, the moth,'
the fish and the black-bee — these five have
died, being tied to one or other of the five
senses viz., sound etc., through their own
attachment. What then is in store for
man who is attached to all these five !

[ Their own attachment : The word * guna ' in
the text means both * a rope ' and * a tendency.' ]

VIVEKACHUDAMAM 33

r r-

11 . Sense-objects are more virulent in
their evil effects than the poison of the
cobra even. Poison kills one who takes it,
but those others kill one vvho even looks
at them through the eyes.

\Looksat them eyes. — The mention of the

eyes here is only typical, and implies the other
sense-organs also ; contact with the external world
by any organ, is intended. ]

^ o;^ 3^^ g^^ ^T?^: ^^T^^fk llvs'^^ll

78. He who is free from the terrible
fetters of the hankering for the sense-
objects so very difficult to get rid of, is
alone fit for liberation, and none else. —
even though he be versed in all the six
Shastras.

[ Six Shastras. — The six schools of Indian
philosophy are meant. Mere book-learning with-
out ^h^Jieart^sj^earning for emancipationywill net
produce any effect. ]

c

34 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

79. Those seekers after liberation wlicf-
have got only an apparent dispassiont
(Vairagya) and are trying to cross the
ocean of Samsara (relative existence), the
shark of hankering catches by the throat
and violently snatching away drowns-them.

half-way.

[ Snatching away — from the pursuit of Brahma-
]nana. ]

80. He who has killed the shark known,
as sense-object with the sword of mature
dispassion, crosses the ocean of Sanlsa;:aj,
free from all obstacles.

[ Dispassion — Vairagya. ]

rv r-

81 . Know that death quickly overtakes^
the stupid man who walks along the dread-
ful ways of sense-pleasure, whereas one
who vt^alks in accordance with the in-
structions of a well-wishing and worthy
Guru, as also his own reasoning, achieyas.
his end— know this to be true.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 35

82. If indeed thou hast a craving for
liberation shun sense-objects from a good
distance as thou wouldst do poison and al-
ways cultivate carefully the nectar-like
virtues of contentment, compassion, for-
giveness, straight-forwardness, calmness
and self-control.

83. Whoever leaves aside what should
always be attempted, viz., the emancipa-
tion from the bondage of Ignorance with-
out beginning, and passionately seeks to
nourish this body — which is an object for
others to enjoy — commits suicide thereby.

[ For othtrs to enjoy : to be eaten perchance by
dogs ^nd jackals after death. ]

8j4-. Whoever seeks to realise the Self

36 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

by devoting himself to the nourishment of
the body, proceeds to cross a river by
catching hold of a crocodile, mistaking it
for a log.

85. So for a seeker after liberation the
infatuation over things like the body is a
dire death. He who has thoroughly con-
quered this deserves the state of freedom.

[ Infatuation. — That I am the body or that the
body etc. are mine. ]

^ rar^T g^T'jft ^w^ crm^wt- ^^^ ^5:r ii^e

86. Conquer the infatuation over things
like the body, one's wife and children, —
conquering which the sages reach that
Supreme State of Vishnu.

[ Supreme State of Vishnu. — From Rig- Veda,

1. Xxii. 20-2I. J

87. This gross body is to be deprecated
for it consists of the skin, flesh, blo®d,
arteries and veins, fat, marrow and bones ^
and full of other offensive things.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 3/

^ •s *s

^^^rTY^ ^^^: ^^^q*: 'j^^i^WT I

88. This gross body is produced by
one's past actions out of the gross ele-
ments subdividing and combining with the
other four, and is the medium of experi-
ence for the soul. That is its waking state
in which it perceives gross objects.

[ Subdividing etc. — Paiichikarana : see note on
Sloka 74. ]

89. Identifying itself with this form the
individual soul, though separate, enjoys
gross objects, such as garlands and sandal-
paste etc., by means of the external organs.
Hence this body has its fullest play in the
waking state.

nrT% \^t ^^ ^TS^f^^f^: II6.0H

90. Know this gross body to be like a
house to the householder, on which rests
man's entire dealing with the external
world.

38 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

91. Birth, decay and death are the
various characteristics of the gross body,
as also stoutness etc. ; childhood etc. are its
different conditions; it has got various
restrictions regarding caste and order of
life; it is subject to various diseases, and
meets with different kinds of treatment,
such as worship, insult and high honours.

Caste — Brahmana &c. Order of life — Brahma-
charya etc. ]

92. The ears, skin, eyes, nose and
tongue are organs of knowledge, for they
help us to cognise objects; the vocal
organs, hands, legs etc. are organs of
action, owing to their tendency for work.

*S fV

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 39

93 — 94. The inner organ (Antahkarana)
is called Manas, Biiddhi, Ego or Chitta,
^.ccording to their respective functionvS :
the Manas, from its considering the pros
and cons of a thing; the Biiddhi, from
its property of determining the truth of
objects; the Ego, from its identification
with this body as one's own self; and the
•Chitta, from its function of seeking for
■pleasurable objects.

95. The same Prana becomes Prana,
Apana, Vyana, Udana and Saniana accord-
ing to tlaeir diversity of functions and
modifications, like gold and water etc.

[Like gold etc. — Just as the same gold is fashioned
into various ornaments, and as water takes the
form of foam, waves, etc.]

40 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

96. The five organs of action such as
speech etc., the five organs of knowledge
beginning with the ear, the group of five
Pranas, Btiddhi and the rest, together with
Nescience, desire and action — these eight
'cities' make up what is called the subtle
body.

j Nescience &'c. — See note on Sloka 55, ]

■ rs

97. Listen, — this subtle body, called
also Linga body, is produced out of the
elements before their subdividing and
combining with each other, is possessed, of
desires and causes the soul to experience
the fruits of its actions. It is a beginning-
less superimposition on the soul brought
on by its own ignorance.

"K •^

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 4I

98 — 99. Dream is a state of the soul
distinct from the waking state, where it
shines by itself. In dreams Biiddhi, by
itself , takes on the role of the agent and
the like, owing to various desires of the
waking state, while the Supreme At man
shines in its own glory, — with Buddhi as
its only superimposition, the witness of
everything, and is not touched by the least
work that the Buddhi does. As it is
wholly- unattacli,ed, it is not touched by
any work that its superimpositions niay
perform.

[Buddhi— here stands for the Antahkarana — the
*' inner organ " or mind.

By z/jf^— independently of the objective world.

Takes OTi the role fe-V.— The Atman is the one
intelligent principle, and whatever Buddhi does it
does borrowing the light ot the Atman. ]

^r^^ir^^fif^ c[^5iT§i^WK?iT ^^^'^#s^^ H

42 , vivekachuDamani

100. This subtle body is the instrument
for all activity oi the Atman, who is
Knowledge Absolute , like the adze and other
tools of a carpenter. Therefore this Atman
is perfectly unattached.

101. Blindness, weakness, and sharpness
are conditions of the eye, due to its fitness
or defectiveness merely; so are deafness
and dumbness etc. of the ear and so
forth, — but never of the Atman, the
Knower.

102. Inhalation and exhalation, yawn-
ing, sneezing, secretion, and leaving this
body etc. are called by experts functions
of Prana and the rest, while hunger and
thirst are characteristics of Prana proper.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 43

103. The inner organ (mind) has its
seat in the organs such as the eye etc., as
well as in the body, identifying itself with
them and endued with a jeflection of: the
At man.

104. Know that it is Egoism which,
identifying itself with the "body, becomes
the doer or enjoyer and in conjunction
with the Gtmas such as the Sattva, as-
sumes the three different states.

[Gunas — the three component factors of Prakriti.
Different jZ/z/^j-— those of waking etc.]

105. When the sense-objects are favoiir-
able it becomes happy, and it becomes
miserable when the case is contrary. So
happiness and misery are the characteristics
of egoism, and not of the ever-blissful
Atman.

106. Sense-objects are pleasurable only

44 VIYEKACHUDAMANI

as dependent on the Atman manifesting
through them, and not independently, be-
cause the Atman is by its very nature the
most beloved of all. Therefore the Atman
is ever blissful, and never suffers misery.

[ Vide Bri. Upa. — Yajnavalkya's teachings to his
wife Maitreyi. ]

107. That in profound sleep we ex-
perience the bliss of Atman independent
of sense-objects, is clearly attested by Sruti,
direct perception, tradition, and inference.

[ Sruti — Chhandogya, Brihad^ranyaka, Kausi-
taki and other Upanishads.

J a grail — is a plural verb. ]

108. Avidya (Nescience) or Ma}^^ called
also the Undifferentiated, is the power of
the Lord. It is without beginning,
is made up of the three Gunas and is
superior to the effects (as their cause) .
She is to be inferred by one of clear
intellect only from the effects She produces.

VIVEKAGHUDAMANI 45

It is She who brings forth this whole
universe. #

[ The Undifferentiated — the perfectly balanced
stale of the three Gunas, where there is no mani-
fested universe. When this balance is disturbed,
then evolution begins.

Power of the Lord. — This distinguishes the
Vedantic conception of Maya from the Sankhya
view of Prakriti which they call insentient and at
the same time independent. ]

109. §he is neither existent nor non-
existent nor partaking of both charac-
ters ; neither same nor different nor both ;
— neither composed of parts nor an in-
divisible whole nor both ; She is most
wonderftd and cannot be described in
w^ords.

rv V

110. This Maya can be destroyed by
the realisation of the pure Brahman, the

46 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

one ■without a second, just as the mistaken
idea of a snake is removed by the dis-
crimination of the rope. She has Jier
Gunas known as Rajas, Tanias and Sattva,
named after their respective iunctions.

1J.1. Rajas has its Vikshepa-Shakti or
projecting power which is of the nature
of an. activity, and from, which this
primeval flow of activity has emanated.
From this also, the mentalmodifications
such as attachment and the rest and gtief
a,nd the like are continually produced.

[ Vikshepa-shakii—th2it power which at once
projects a new form when once the real nature of a
thing has been veiled by the dvarana-shakti, rhen-
tioned later in Sloka 113,

Primeval flow etc.—\, e. the phenomenal world,
alternately evolving and going back into an involved
state. Cf. Gita xv. 4.]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI O^J

112. Lust, aii^er, avarice, arrogance
spite, egoism, envy and jealousy etc. — these
are the dire attributes of Rajas, from which
this worlflly tendency of man is produced.
Therefore Rajas is a cause of bondage.

113, ^z'rzV? or the veiling power is the
power of Tamas which makes things ap.-
pear other thaa what they are. It is this
that causes man's repeated transmigra-
tions, and starts the action of the project-
ing power (Vikshepa) ,

•^ r^

ST^r^mR <TTOf cfTSPT ^g^Hi SC?r^eH^^3TTf 5T1"-

114-, Even wise and. learned men and
men who are clever and adepts in the
vision of the exceedingly subtle Atman, are
overpowered by Tamas and do not under-
stand the Atman even though clearly
explained in various Ways. Wtatis simply

48 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

superimposed by delusion, they consider
as true, and attach themselves to its
effects. Alas! How powerful is the great
Avrzlz Shakti of dreadful Tamast

115.' Absence of right judgment, or
contrary judgment, want of definite belief
and doubt — these certainly never desert
one who has any connection with this
"veiling power" and then the "projecting
power" gives ceaseless trouble.

[ Wan/ of definite belief- — in the existence of a thing
even though there may be a vague notion of it. ]

116. Ignorance, lassitude, dulness, sleep,
inadvertence and stupidity etc. are attri-
butes of Tarn as. One tied to these does
not comprehend anything but remains like
one asleep or like a stock or stone.

[ Stock or stojie — lit. pillar, ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 49

117. Pure Sattva is (clear) like water,
yet in conjunction with Rajas and Tamas
makes for transmigration. A glimpse of
the Atman becomes reflected in the
Sattva and like the sun reveals the entire
world of matter.

m^^ ^T^^^ ¥Rf?cT VTITT

118. The traits of mixed Sattva are an
Titter absence of pride etc. and Niyamas
and Yama etc., as well as faith, devotion,
yearning for liberation, the divine tenden-
cies and turning away from the unreal.

[ Absence of pride etc. — The reference is to the
higher attributes enumerated in the Bhagavad-Gita
XIII. 8-12.

Yama — Non-killing, truthfulness etc. Niyama —
Purity, contentment etc. Vide Patanjali's Yoga
Aphorisms III. 30 & 32.

Divine tendencies — The reference is to the
opening Slokas of Gita, Ch. XVI. ]

50 TIVEKACHUDAMANl

119, The traits of pure Sattva ate
cheerf Illness, the realisation, of one'S' owix
Self, supreme peace, contentment, bliss,,
and steady devotion for the At man, by
which the aspirant enjoys bliss ev^erlasting-...
[ Pure Sattva — Sattva unraixed with Rajas- aji<l
Tamas elements. ]

r^ 'N

120. This Undifferentiated spoken of a»^
the compound of the three Gunas is- the
causal body of the soul. Profound sleep is*
its special state, in which the functions of
the mind and all its organs are suspended.

[ Undifferentiated— Avyakt'amyWiQn\!\QnQ6. in Sloka:^
io8 and following.

0/tke x»«/— identifying itself thTOugh ignorance-
>^ith thi& or the other two bodies.

The functions. suspended'— not in perfect

knowledge as in Samadhi, but in ignorance. Tfeis^
is the differentia between tbes€ two states. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 51

^^sr^r^fiTrdy HTi fNr-

r^ r^ "^

121. Profound sleep is the cessation of
all kinds of perception, in which the mind
remains in a subtle, seed-like form. The
test of this is the universal verdict that
I did not know anything then.

[Ail kifids of perception — including remem-
brance and delusion also.

The universal verdict &c. — This negative re-
memhrance proves the continuity of the mind even
in the sushupti state. ]

^ f^^fKT f^^: 5[yT<^: I

122. The body and the organs, the
Pranas, Manas and Egoism etc., all forms
of function, the sense-objects, pleasures
and the rest, the gross elements such as
the ether and so forth, in fact, the whole
universe, up to the Undifferentiated — all

this is Not-self.

[ This and the next Sloka set forth what we are
to avoid identifying ourselves with. We are the
Pure Self, eternally free from all duality. ]

52 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

123. From Mahat down to the gross
]3ody everything is the effect of Maya :
These and Maya Herself know thou to be
Non-self and therefore unreal like the
mirage in a desert,

^[Mahat — Cosmic Intelligence. It is the first
to proceed from Prakriti or Maya. For the
hierarchy vide Katha Upa. I. iii. lo-ii. ]

124. Now I am going to tell thee of the
real nature of the Paramatman, realising
which man is freed from bondage and at-
tains liberation.

[ Liberation : ' Kaivalya ' literally means extreme
aloofness. ]

125. There is some Absolute Entity,
the eternal substratum of the perception
of Egoism, the witness of three states, and
distinct from the five sheaths or cover-
ings.

l^Five sheaths &c. — Consisting respectively of
Anna ( matter ), Prana ( force ), Mana ( mind ),

VIVEKACHUDAMANt 5^

Vijnina (knowledge) and Ananda (Bliss). The first
two comprise this body of ours, the third and
fourth make up the subtle body (Sukshma Sarira)
and the last the causal body (Karana Sarira). The
Atman referred to in this Sloka is beyond them all.
These Kosas will be dealt with later on in the
book. ]

126. Who knows everything that hap-
pens in the waking state, in dream and in
profound sleep, is aware of the presence
or absence of the mind and its functions,
and is the background of the notion,
' Here I am.'

[ This Sloka gives the purport of such Sruti
passages as Kena Up. I. 6, and Bri. III. iv. 2. ]

127. Who Himself sees all, whom no
one beholds, who illumines the Buddhi
etc., but whom they cannot illumine. —
This is He.

128. By whom this universe is pervaded,
whom nothing pervades, who shining all

54 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

this (universe) shines as His reflection. —
This is He.

[By ivhom etc. — Compare Chhandogya III. xi. 6,
and Gita x. 42.

Who shining etc. — A reproduction of the sense
of the celebrated verse occurring in Katha Upa. II.
V. 15, Mundaka II. ii. 10, and Swetaswatara vi. 14.]

129. By whose very presence the body,
the organs, mind and intellect keep to
their respective spheres of action, like
servants !

rv "v.

130. By whom everything from Egoism
down to the body, the sense-objects and
pleasure etc. is known as palpably as a
jar, — for He is the essence of Eternal
Knowledge !

[ Compare Bri. IV. iii. 23.]

131. This is the innermost Self, the
primeval Purtisha (Being) , whose essence

V.1VEKACHUDAMANI 55

is tlhe constaiit realisation of infinite Bliss,
T\'ho is ever the same, yet reflecting
through the different mental modifications,
^nd commanded by whom the organs and
Pranas perform their functions.

[ iKfiermost Self — Vide Bri. III. 4 and elsewhere.

Jiifleciitig etc. — Compare Kena II. 12.

Commanded by whom ^c. — See the opening
Sloka of the same Upanishad and the reply givea
to it later on. ]

^^RTH^T f^^^ftr^: !T^m^ \\\\\^

132. In this very body, in the mind fnll
-of Sattva^ in the secret chamber of the
intellect, in the Akasa known as the Un-
manifested, the Atman, of charming
splendour, shines like the sun aloft, mani-
festing this universe through Its own efful-
gence.

[ This Sloka gives t^e hint wh-ere to look in for
the Atmen. First of all there i« the gross body ;
within this there is the mind or " inner organ,"
of which Buddhi or intelligence, characterised
hy determination^ is the most developed form ;
^vithin Buddhi again, pervading it, is the causal
body known as the Unmanifested. We must
seek ti)£ Aiman iofeide this. The idea is that

5$ VIVEKACHUDAMANI

Atman transcends all the three bodies — in fact the
whole sphere of duality and materiality. The
word * Akasa ' often occurs in the Sruti in the
sense of Atman or Brahman. The Vedanta Sutras
(I. i. 22) discuss this question and decide in
favour of this meaning. ]

133. — The knower of the modifications
of mind and egoism, and of the activities
of the body, the organs, and Pranas, ap-
parently taking their forms, like the fire in
a ball of iron; It neither acts nor is
subject to change in the least.

[Like the fire iron — Just as fire has no form

of its own, but seems to take on the form of the
iron ball which it turns red-hot, so the Atmao
though without form seems to appear as Buddhi
and so forth.

Compare Katha II. ii. 9. ]

r\ •v •^ r^ •v /^

rv <v

134. It is neither born nor dies, It
neither grows nor decays, nor does It

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 57

undergo any change, being eternal. It
does not cease to exist even when this
body is destroyed, like the sky in a jar
(after it is broken) , for It is independent.
[ This Sloka refers to the six states enumerated
by Yaska, which overtake every being, such as
birth, existence etc. The Atman is above all
change. ]

135. The Supreme Self, different from
the Prakriti and its modifications, of the
essence of Pure Knowledge, and Absolute,
directly manifests this entire gross and
subtle universe, in the waking and other
states, as the substratum of the persistent
sense of egoism and manifests Itself as
the Witness of Buddhi, the determinative

faculty.

\ Prakrifi—ihQ Mother of the entire manifested
universe.

Gross and subile universe— \.\iQ world of matter
and thought.

The Witness of Buddhi — all actions that we
seem to be doing are really done by Buddhi,
while the Self ever stands aloof , the only Absolute

Entity. ]

5S VIVEKACHUDAMANI

p^^JT^nrm ^r^rfkfe sf^sr^r^rrri I

136. By means of a regulated mind and
the purified intellect (Buddhi) realise thou
directly thy own Self, in the body, so as
to identify .jthyself with It, cross the
boundless ocean of Samsara whose waves
are birth and death, and firmly estalished
in Brahman as thy own essence be
blessed.

\^ Identity // — instead of with the gross,

subtle and causal bodies.

Established nature — By our very nature we

are ever identified with Brahman, but through
ignorance we think we are limited and so forth. ]

137. Identifying the Self with this Non-
self — this is the bondage of man, which
is due to his ignorance, and brings in its
train the miseries of birth and death. It
is through this that one considers this
evanescent body as real, and identifying

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 59

oneself with it, nourishes, bathes, and
preserves it by means of ( agreeable )
sense-objects, by which latter he becomes
bound as the caterpillar by the threads of

its cocoon.

[ ^izM<f^— keeps it clean and tidy.

Sense-objects &c.—¥l^ runs after sense-pleasures
thinking that will conduce to the well-being of the
body, but these in turn throw him into a terrible
bondage, and he has to abjure them wholly to
attain his freedom, as the caterpillar has to cut
through its cocoon. ]

138. One who is overpowered by igno-
xance mistakes a thing for what it is not :
It is the absence of discrimination that
causes one to mistake a snake for a rope
and great dangers overtake him when he
seizes it through that wTong notion.
Hence, listen, my friend, it is the mistak-
ing of transitory things as real that cons-
titutes bondage.

[ Discrimination — between what is real (viz. the
Self ) and what is not real (viz. the phenomenal
world). ]

60 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

r^

139. This veiling power {Avriti) , which
preponderates in ignorance, covers the
Self, whose glories are infinite and which
manifests Itself through the power of
knowledge, indivisible, eternal, and one
without a second, — as Rahu does the orb
of the stin.

[ As Rdhu &c. — The reference is to the solar
eclipse. In Indian mythology the sun is supposed
to be periodically overpowered by a demon named
Rahu. ]

^ f^^rr^^T ^5T^ T55^r%3^5i?TRT ii?«oii

140. When one's own Self, endowed
with the purest splendour, is hidden from
view, a man through ignorance falsely
identifies himself with this body, which is
non-self. And then the great power of
Rajas called Vikshepa^ the projecting
power, sorely afflicts him through the
binding fetters of lust, anger etc.

[ Projecting power^^StQ note on Sloka 1 1 1 . ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 6l

141. The man of perverted intellect,
having his self-knowledge swallowed up by
the shark of utter ignorance, himself
imitates the various states of the Intellect
(Buddhi) as that is its superimposed attri-
bute— and drifts up and down in this
boundless ocean of Samsara full of the
poison of sense-enjoyment, now sinking,
now rising, — a miserable fate indeed !

[ Himself imitates fe'c.— The Self is the real
nature of every being, but a mistaken identification
with the Buddhi causes him to appear as if he
were active. See note on Sloka 135.

Sarnsdra — the entire relative existence.

Up and down : sinking and mz>/^.— Acquiring
different bodies such as the angelic or the animal,
according to the good and bad deeds performed,
and enjoying or suffering therein. ]

6^; VIVEKACHUDAMANI

142 . As layers of clouds , generated by the
sun's rays, cover the sun and appear solely
(in the sky), so Egoism, generated by
the Self, covers the Reality of the Self and
appears solely by itself.

[ Solely by itself -^2^.^ if there were no Atman at
all. But the clouds vanish subsequently, and so
does egoism too. ]

143. Just as, on a cloudy day, when the
sun is swallowed up by dense clouds y
violent cold blasts trouble them, so when
the Atman is hidden by intense ignorance,
the dreadful Vikshepa Shakti (projecting
power) afflicts the foolish man with
numerous griefs.

[Blasts trouble them — The root s^PT has .also a
secondary meaning, namely to cause to wander,
which is also implied here. The verb^qeiirf in the
last line of this verse has also a similar meaning.
The foolish man is made to take sometimes very
low bodies — that is the meaning. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 6$

144. It is from these two powers that

man's bondage has proceeded, — beguiled

by which he mistakes the body for the

Self and wanders (from body to body) .

[ Tzvo powers — viz., the veiling and projecting
powers — Avarana and Vikshepa. ] tp

•v •^

Tm : q-^^TTT5 ^^3^5: ^^?^nfR *. ^TT%^r : I

145. Of the tree of Samsara ignorance
is the seed, the identification with the
body is its sprout, attachment its tender
leaves, work its water, the body its trunk,
the vital forces its branches, the organs
its twigs, the sense-objects its flowers,
various miseries due to diverse works are
its fruits, and the individual soul is the
bird on it.

[ In tliis stanza Samsara or relative existence is
likened to a tree, and the simile is brought out in
detail. The appropriateness of the comparisons
vrill be patent on reflection. It is this kind of
Composition which shows Sankara not only to be
a great philosopher but a true poet also. And such
Slokas. as the reader will perceive, abound in this
masterpiece of Vedantic literature.

S&ul is tht bird &'c. — Compare the beautiful

64 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

Slokas of the Mundaka Upanishad ( III. i. 1-2 ) —
"ST ^'irr ^i^r ^m^ " &c. With the ripening of
Knowledge the two birds coalesce into one, the
Self alone remains, and life is known to be a
dream. ]

146. Friend, this bondage of non-Self
springs from ignorance, is self-caused, and
is described as without beginning and end.
It subjects one to the long train of miseries
such as birth and death, disease and
decrepitude and so forth.

[ Self-caused — not depending upon any other
cause.

Wiihout end — Relatively speaking, that is. On
the Realisation of the Self it disappears. ]

rN •v

147. This bondage can be destroyed
neither by weapons nor by wind, nor by
fire, nor by millions of acts — by nothing
except the grea^ sword of the Knowledge

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 65

of discrimination, sharpened by the grace
of the Lord. Paramatman.

L Acts — enjoined by the Scriptures, and done
with motives.

Grace Paratnatmait — An echo of Kaiha

L'pa. I. ii. 20. The Sruti has also a different read-
ing— '^TT^sraTH^r^' — which means 'through the purity
of the mind and organs etc' — This meaning is
also suggested here, j

148. One who is passionately devoted to
the authority of the Srutis acquires steadi-
ness in his Swadharma, which alone con-
duces to the purity of his mind. The
man of pure mind realises the Supreme
Self, and by this alone Samsara with its
root is destroyed.

[ Swadharma — lit. one's own duty, or the duly
for which we are fit, — which the Gita enjoins on us
all to perform, as the way to perfection.

J is root — Ignorance. ]

s

^ ViVEKACHUDAMANr

149. Covered by the sheaths like the'
material one and the rest, which are the'
products of Its own power, the Self ceases ^
to appear, like the water of a tank by its^
acctimulation of sedge.

\^The sheaths &'c. — See note on Sloka i?5.
They are called sheaths as they are coverings over
the Atraan which manifests Itself through them.
From the Afinamaya to the Anandainaya the'
sheaths are gradually finer and finer. Knowledge
consists in going beyond them all by means of
regulated practiceand coming face to face, as it
were, with the Atman. ]

-V

150. On the removal of - that sedge the
i)erfectly pure water, that allays the pangs-
of thirst and gives immediate joy, appears-
unobstructed before the man.

[ The water is not something that is to be pro-
cured from anywhere else, it is already there : only
the obstructions have to be removed. So in the-
case of 'Atman also. ]

151 . When all the five sheaths have been
eliminated, the Self of man appears — pure,
of the essence of everlasting and un-

VIVEKAGHUDAMANI (if

alloyed bliss, indwelling, supreme, and
self -effulgent.

\ Eliminated — Discriminated as being other than
the Self.

Indwelling — dwelling within the heart of all. ]

152. To remove his bondage the wise
man should discriminate between the Self
and non-Self. By that alone he comes to
know his own Self as Existence-Knowl-
edge-Bliss x\bsolute, and becomes happy.

153. He is free who discriminates be-
tween all sense-objects and the indwelling,
unattached and inactive Self, as one sepa-
rates a stalk of grass from its enveloping
sheath, and merging everything in It
remains in a state of identity with That.

\_All se?ise-ol)jects — specially the body and its
D'gans.

Inactive — the Witness of all activity

A stalk of grass &c. — Compare Katha Upanishad,
IL iii. 17.

Merging &€. — Knowing that only the Atman
manifests Itself through name and form. ]

68 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

154. This body of ours is the product o\
food and comprises the material sheath ;
it lives on food, and dies without it ;
it is a mass of skin, flesh, blood, bones
and lots of other filthy things, and can
never be the eternally pure, seif-existent
Atman.

[ Product of food — that went to build up the
parent-body. ]

155. It does not exist prior to birth or
posterior to death, but lasts only for a
short (intervening) period ; its virtues are
transient, audit is changeful by nature;
it is manifold, inert, and is a sense-object
like a jar (or any other thing) ; how can
it be one's own Self, the Witness of
changes in all things ?

{^Manifold — not a simple, and subject to constant
transformations. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 69

156. The body, consisting of arms and
legs, cannot be the Atman, for one conti-
nues to live even when particular limbs
are gone, and the different functions of
the organism also remain intact. The
body which is subject to another's rule
cannot be the Self which is the Ruler of all.

[ Different functions — other than those directly
interfered with. ]

157. That the Atman is different from
the body, its characteristics, its activities,
and its states etc., of which It is the
witness, is self-evident, and needs no
demonstration.

[ Characteristics — such as stoutness or leanness etc.
States — boyhood, youth etc. ]

158. How can the body, being a pack
of bones, covered with flesh, and full of
filth, and highly impure, be the self-
exlstent Atman, the Knower, which is ever
distinct from it ?

70 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

^ffRr i:^^^: ^dRT I

159. It is the foolish man who identi-
fies himself with a mass of skin, flesh, fat,
bones and filth, while the man of dis-
crimination knows his own Self, the only
Reality that there is, as distinct from the
body.

»v »s rv •v

*^ *v

160. The stupid man thinks he is the
body, the book-learned man identifies
himself with the mixture of body and soul,
while the great man possessed of Realisa-
tion due to discrimination, looks iipon
the eternal Atman as his Self, and thinks,
" I am Brahman."

[Three classes of people are distinguished in
this Sloka, of whom the Advaitist is of course
given the highest place.

Mixture of body a?id soul — The average man
thinks he is both body and soul acting in unison.]

VlVEKACMUDAMANi 7 1

^^^^ ^n*=?T ^^ ^^^^ H?^?!!

161 . O foolish one, cease to identify thy-
self with this bundle of skin, flesh, fat,
bones ahd filth, and identify thy<;elf instead
with the Absolute Brahman, the Self of all,
2in(\ thus attain to supreme Peace.

162. As long as the book-learned man
does not give up his mistaken identifica-
tion with the body and organs etc.-,
which are unreal, there is no talk of
emancipation even for him, be he ever so
erudite in the Vedanta and morals.

' Body and organs etc. — Jn fact, the wiioie ob-
jective world.

Erudite &€. — Mere book-learning is meant. Un-
less he has realised the state of oneness he will be
a mere talker, that is all. J

72 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

163. Just as thou dost not identify tliy
self with the shadow-body, the image-
body, the dream -body, or the body thou
hast in the imaginations of thy heart, cease
thou to do Hkewise with the living- body
also.

[ Shadoiv-hody — The shadow of thv body.

Jmage-body — the image or reflection of thy body,
cast in water etc.

Dream-body — the body that thou mayst assume
in dreams.

Living-body — the gross body, with the Pranas etc.]

164. The identification with the body
alone is the root which produces the
mi.sery of birth etc., of people who are at-
tached to the unreal ; therefore destroy
thoii this with the utmost care. Whea
this identification caiised by the mind is
given up, there is no more chance for
rebirth.

[ Compare Chhandogya Upa. VIII. xii. i. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 73

165. The Prana, with which we are all
faniiiiar, coupled with the five organs of
action, forms the Vital Sheath, permeated
by which the Material Sheath enga^^es it-
self in all activities as if it were living.

[ Orga7is of acfio?i — The brain centres which
control speech, manual activity, locomotion, ex-
cretion and reproduction. See Sloka 92.

Material Sheath — described in Slokas 154 and
following.

This activity which the Vital Sheath is here
said to impart is again a borrowed one, as will
appear tVon^ the last line of the next Sloka.

For a description of the Five Kosas (Sheaths)
the reader is referred to the Taittiriya Upa., second
Valli or chapter. ]

166. Neither is the Vital Sheath the
Self — because it is a modification of Vayu
and like the air it enters into and comes
out of the body, and because it never

74 VIVEKACHUDAMANl

knows in the least either its 'own weal and

woe or those of others, being eternally

-dependent on the Self.

[ Vdyu : The Prana-Vayu or life-force is
meant here. The word commonly means air, wiiich
4)rings in the comparison with the air in the next line.

Enters into ■&€. — i. e. as breath, which is its
gross manifestation. ]

167 . The organs of knowledge together
with the mind form the Mental Sheath, —
the cause of the diversity of things, such
as T and 'mine.' It is powerful and
endued wdth the faculty of creating dif-
ferences of name etc. It manifests itself
as permeating the preceding, i. e. Vital
Sheath.

[ Organs of knowledge — The brain centres
W'liich control sight, hearings smell, taste and ioucIl
See Sloka 92. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 75

168. The Mental Sheath is the (sacri-
ficial) fire which, fed with the fuel of
desires by the five sense-organs which
serve as priests, and set ablaze by the
sense-objects which act as the stream of
oblations, brings about this phenomenal

universe.

[ The sacrificial fire confers on the Yajamana, or
the man who performs the sacrifice, the enjoyments
of the heavenly spheres. So the mind also confers
on the Jiva or individual soul the pleasures of the
objective world.

It is the mind that projects the objective universe
— this is the plain meaning. See Sloka 170, below.]

169. There is no Ignorance (Avidya)
outside the mind. The mind is Avidya,'
the cause of the bondage of transmigra-
tion. When that is destroyed, all else is
destroyed, and when it manifests, every-
thing else manifests.

[According to Vedanla, there is no actual change
in the Self, which is by nature pore and perfect.
It is Ignorance or Avidya ihat has covered Jts
vision, so to say and It appears as limited and
subject to change. Now, this ignorance is imbeds

^6 VIVEKACHUDAMANt

ded in the mind. When the mind is thoroughly
purified through Sadhana or discipline, the glory
of the Atman manifests itself. This is said to be
liberation.
Destroyed— m the highest or Nirvikalpa Samadhi.]

170. In dreams, wlien there is no actual
contact with the external world, the mind
alone creates the whole universe consisting
of the enjoyer etc. And similarly in the
waking state also, — there is no difference.
Therefore all this ( phenomenal universe )
is the projection of the mind.

[ The enjoyei- etc. — i. e., the enjoyer, the enjoy-
able and enjoyment : subject, object and their
coming into relation. ]

r^ ■v

171. In dreamless sleep, when the mind
is reduced to its causal state, there exists
nothing ( for the person asleep ) , as is
evident from universal experience. Hence

VlVEKACHUDAMANl Tf

man's relative existence is simply the crea-
tion of the mind, and has no objective
reality.

'^Universal experience — The subject has been
touched on already. See Sloka 121, ante. ]

172. Clouds are brought in by the wind
and again driven away by the same agency.
Similarly, man's bondage is caused by the
mind and Liberation too is caused by that
alone.

173. It (first) creates an attachment in
man for the body and all other sense-
objects, and binds him through that at-
tachment like a beast b}^ means of ropes.
Afterwards, the self -same mind creates in
the individual an utter distaste for these
sense-objects and frees him from the
bondage.

[For the double meaning of the word Guna, see
note on Sioka 76. ]

78 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

174. Therefore the mind is the only
cause that brings about man's bondage
or liberation : when tainted bv the effects
of Rajas it leads to bondage, and when
pure and divested of the Rajas and Tamas
elements it conduces to Liberation.

[A reminiscence of the second Sloka of Amrita-
bindu Upa. ]

^^^cfr ifejT^r gg^T-

175. Attaining purity through the pre-
ponderance of Discrimination and Renun-
ciation, the mind makes for Liberation.
Hence the wise seeker after Liberation
must first strengthen these two.

[ Discriminaiion — between Self and Non-Self.
Rernmciation — of the Non-self. ]

*^ rv

nVKKACHUDAMANf /^

176. Ill the forest-tract of sense
pleasures there prowls a hug^e tiger calle^i
mind. Let o^ood people who have a long
ing for Hberation never go there.

177. The mind continually produces for
the experiencer all sense-objects without
exception, whether perceived as gross or
fine; the differences of bodv, caste, order
of life, and tribe, as well as the varieties
of qualification, action, means and results.

f Gross or fine — in the waking- and dream slates
respectively.

Action — to obtain desired results.

Means — for these actions.

Results — such as enjoyment or liberation. ]

178. Deluding the Jiva who is unat-
tached Pure Intelligence, and binding himr
by the ties of body, organs and Prauas,
the mind causes him to wander, with.

3o VIVEKACHUDAMANI

ideas Gi ' I ' and ' mine,' amidst the vaned
enjoyment of results achieved by himself.

{^Binding Prafias — strictly speaking, it is

our attachment for these that binds us. ]

179. Man's transmigration is due to the
evil of siiperimposition, and the bondage
of superimposition is created by himself
and none else. It is this that causes the
misery of birth etc. for the man of non-
discrimination who is tainted by Rajas
and Tamas.

[ Superimpositio7i — This is the favourite theme
of the Vedanta Philosophy, to explain how the
ever-free Self came to be bound at all. The whole
thing is a mistaken identit}^, a self-hypnotism, it
says, and the way out of it lies in de-hypnotising
ourselves. ]

180. Hence sages who have fathomed
its secret have designated the mind alone
as Avidya or Ignorance, by which alone
the universe is moved to and fro, like
masses of clouds by the wind.

VIVEKACHUDAMANT Si

181. Therefore the seeker after Libera-
tion must carefully purify the mind. When
-this is purified, Liberation is as easy of
access as a fruit on the palm of one's hand.

182. He who by means of one-pointed
devotion for Liberation roots out the at-
tachment for sense- objects, renounces all
actions, and with faith in the Real Brah-
man regularly practises hearing etc.,
succeeds in purging the Rajasic nature of
the intellect.

r A U actions — that are done with selfish motives.

Hearittg etc. — i. e. hearing (from the lips of the
Guru), reflection and meditation, of the highest
Vedantic truth — the identity of the Jiva and Brah-
man. ]

Si VIVEKACHUDAISTANF

183 . Neither cam the Mental Sheath Be
the Supreme Seif^ because it has a begin-
nings and an end J is subject to modifications^
is characterised by pain and suffering, and
is an object. Whereas the subject can
never be identified with the objects of
knowledge.

[ Is an object — cognisable by the Self which is the
eternal subject. ]

184. Buddhi with its modifications and.
the organs of knowledge^ having the-
characteristics of the agent, forms the
Vijnanamaya Koshaor Knowledge Sheath^,
which is the cause oi man's transmigration..

[ Buddhi — the determinative faculty.

Modifications — such as Egoisnr^ etc.

Having agent — thinking *I am the agents* ]

185. This Knowledge Sheath, which
seems to be followed by a reflection of the
power of the Chit, is a modification of the
Prakriti, is endowed with the functiQU oi

VIVEKACHUDAMANI B$

knowledge, and always wholly identifies it-
self with the body and the organs etc.

[ Followed Chi/ — The Knowledge Sheath is

in reality material and insentient, but a reflection
of ihe C/ii/ or Atman makes it appear as intelligent.

Modification ^c. — and therefore insentient. ]

profit ^wiW^ 15^wr:
frprrflr f^r^ferar g;;^?^^: i

186-7. It is without beginning, charac-
terised by egoism, is called the Jiva, and
carries on all the activities on the relative
plane. Through previous desires it per- ^

forms good and evil actions, and experi-
ences their results. Being born in various
bodies it comes and goes, up and down.
It is this Knowledge Sheath that has the
waking, dream and other states and ex-
periences joy and grief.

[ Previous desires — desires of previous births.
Comes and goes, up and down — is born and dies,
in higher or lower bodies, j

ts,

84 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

188. It always mistakes the dutie*
functions and attributes of the orders of
life which belong to the body, as its own.
The Knowledge Sheath is exceedingly
effulgent, owing to its close proximity to
the Supreme Self, which identifying Itself
with it suffers transmigration through
delusion. It is therefore a superimposi-
tion on the Self.

[ Orders of life — Ashramas. ]

^vi Tk^^^^\ anr%5 eft ^Src^rt s^iM^: \

189. The self-effulgent Atman which is
Pure Knowledge, shines in the midst of
the Pranas, within the heart. Though im-
mutable. It becomes the agent and ex-
periencer owing to Its superimposition —
the Knowledge Sheath.

[ The first part of this Sloka is a quotation from
Brihadaranyaka Upa. IV. iii. 7.

In the midst of the Pranas — great neari^ess is

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 8$

meant. Prana means force, here the physiological
And mental forces are referred to.

Wiihin the heart— \vi Buddhi, the seat of which
is supposed to be the heart. ]

190. Though the Self of everything that

exists, this Atman, Itself assuming the

limitations of the Buddhi and wrongly

identifying Itself with this totally unreal

entity, looks upon Itself as something dif-

terent, — like earthen jars from the earth

of which they are made.

[ Buddhi — here stands for the Knowledge-
Sheath.

As something different — as conditioned and bound,
just an ignorant man may consider earthen pots as
something distinct from the earth of which they are
made. The wise man knows that the difference is
simply due to name and form, which are creations
of the mind. ]

86 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

191. Owing to its connection with the
superimpositions the Supreme Self, even
though naturally perfect and eternally un-
changing, assumes the qualities of the
superimpositions and appears to act just
as they do — ^like the changeless fire assum-
ing the modifications of the iron which it
turns red-hot.

[ Naturally perfect— Ox the phrase qi;: PTfT^nr^
may mean *' transcending Nature."

Mcdificatiom — such as size, shape etc. ]

192. The disciple questioned, *' Be it
through delusion or otherwise that the
Supreme Self has come to consider Itself
as the Jiva, this superimposition is with-
out beginning, and that which has no
beginning cannot be supposed to have an
end either.

[ Jiva — individual soul, or the Self under self-
imposed limitations. ]

193. '* Therefore the Jivahood of the
Soul also must have no end, and its transmit

VrVEKACHUDAMANl iy

^ration continue for ever. How then can
there be liberation for tht soul ? Kindly
enlighten me on this point, O revered
Teacher.'*

[ Jwahood — the self-hypnotised state of the cv<?i-
free A tin an. ]

194. The Teacher replied: Thou hast
Tightly questioned, O learned one ! Listen
thou therefore attentively: The imagina-
tion which has been conjured up by delu*
i;ion can never be accepted as a fact,

^rf^cf f^nr r^riaiF^^ Ht**«i^ l^^i^: i

195- But lor delusion there can be no
connection of the Self — which is unat-
tached, beyond activity and formless — with
the objective world, as in the case of
blueness etc. with reference to the sky.

[ Blueness etc. — The sky has no colour of its
own but we mentally associate blueness with it.
The blueness is in our mind^ and not in the sky.
Similarly, limitation exists not in the Absolute Self,
bill in our own minds. ]

88 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

196. The Jivahood of the Atman, the
Witness, which is beyond qualities and
beyond activity, and which is realised with-
in as Knowledge and Bliss Absolute — has
been superimposed by the delusion of the
Buddhi, and is not r«al. And because it
is by nature an unreality, it ceases to exist
when the delusion is gone.

[ As Knowledge and Bliss Absolute — These are
Its essence, and therefore can never depart from It>
as heat from fire. ]

197. It exists only so long as the delu--
sion lasts, being caused by indiscrimitiar
tion due to delusion. The rope is supposed
to be the snake only so long as the mis-
take lasts, and there is no more snake when
the delusion has vanished. Similar is the
case here.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI $g

198-9. Avidya or Nescience and its
effects are likewise considered as beginning-
less. But with the rise of Vidya or Reali-
sation, the entire effects of Avidya, even
though begin ningless, are destroyed to-
gether with their root — like dreams on
waking up from sleep. It is clear that the
phenomenal universe, even though begin-
ningless, is not eternal, — like previous
non-existence.

\ Their root — i. e. Avidya.

Previous non-existence — Prdgabhdva — a term of
Hindu logic. When we say a thing comes into
l)eing at a definite point of lime, we imply also that
there was non-existence of that particular thing
prior to the moment of its birth. And this ' non-
exi!^tence ' is obviously beginningless. But \\. ceases
as soon as the thing comes into being. Similarly,
AviJya which means absence of Vidya or knowl-
edge, even though beginningless, disappears when
realisation comes. ]

90 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

200-1. A previous non-existence, even
though beginningless, is observed to have
an end. So the Jivahood which is
imagined to be in the Atman through its
relation with superimposed attributes such
as the Buddhi, is not real; whereas the
other (the Atman) is essentially different
from it. The relation between the Atman
and Buddhi is due to a false knowledge.

[ Superimposed attributes'. Just as a crystal
placed near a, red flower seems to appear as red.
Or when we look at a thing behind a curtain
through an aperture, as the aperture becomes bigger
and bigger we see more and more of the thing
behind ,* but we erroneously think that the thing is
growing, whereas, in reality all the change takes
place in the curtain only. Similarly we see the
Atman through the covering of Prakriti or Nature,
ot which Buddhi etc. are manifestations, and Nature
which is continually changing, leads us to think
that the Atman back of it is changing too, which is
a mistake. ]

202. The cessation of that superimposi-
tion takes place through perfect knowl-
edge, and by no other means. Perfect

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 9I

knowledge, according to the Srutis, con-
sists in the realisation of the identity of
the individual soul and Brahman.

203. This realisation is attained by a
perfect discrimination between the Self
and non-Self. Therefore one must strive
for the discrimination between the indivi-
dual soul and the eternal Self.

204. Just as the water which is very
muddy again appears as transparent water
when the mud is removed, so the Atman
also manifests Its undimmed lustre when
the taint has been removed.

[ Water is naturally pure, but it is polluted by
foreign substances mixing with it. These impurities
can be removed bv filtration, distillation etc. So
the apparent impurity of the soul can be removed
by discrimination, which shows that it is Nescience
thai hides the real nature of the Self. ]

9:2 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

205. When the unreal ceases to exists
this very individual soul is definitely
realised as the eternal Self. Therefore
one must make it a point to completely
remove things like egoism etc. from the
eternal Self.

[ Things — which are in reality superimpositions.]

206. This Knowledge Sheath (Vijnana-
maya) that we have been speaking of,
cannot be the Supreme Self for the follow-
ing reasons — because it is subject to
change, because it is insentient, is a
limited thing, an object of the senses, and
is not constantly present: An unreal
thing cannot indeed be taken for the real
Atman.

[ Subject to change. — Whereas the Atman is
changeless, Knowledge Absolute, unlimited, the
eternal Subject, and the universal substratum of all
things. Just as the rope is the only reality witbi
regard to the mistaken snake-idea etc, ]

^^r^TR^^JT^: nr5£rTfe?nir^: jir^rwrm^^:!

VTVEKACHUDAMANI 93

207. The Blissful Sheath (Anandamaya)
is that modification of Nescience which
manifests itself catching a reflection of the
Atman which is Bliss absolute; whose
attiibutes are pleasure and the rest ; which
appears in view when some object agree-
able to oneself presents itself. It makes
itself spontaneously felt to the fortunate
during the fruition of their virtuous deeds ;
from which every corporeal being derives
great joy without the least effort.

[ Modification of Nescience — The experience of
the Sushupti state will be spoken of in the next Sloka
to be the typical enjoyment of the Anandamaya
Kosha. And deep sleep is always a state of intense
ignorance. Hence this Sheath must be a modifica-
tion of Nescience.

Pleasure and the rest — The reference is to the
Taittiriya Upa. II. v., where Friya, Moda and
Pramoda ( various degrees of enjoyment ) are said
to be the attributes of the Anandamaya Kosha. ]

208. The Blissful Sheath has its fullest
play during profound sleep, while in the
dreaming and wakeful states it has only a
partial manifestation, occasioned by the

sight of agreeable objects and so forth.

[ Sight... so for tk — actual sense perception (in the
waking state), or memory-impressions (in dream).]

94 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

^^f'WT'tjpwt: ^TT^T^

209. Nor is the Blissftil Sheath the Su-
preme Self, because it is endowed with
changeful attributes, because it is a modi-
fication of Prakriti, is the effect of past
good deeds, and imbedded in the other
Sheaths which are modifications.

[ Imbedded in the other Sheaths — The reference
is again to the Taittiriya Upa., 2nd Chapter, where
the five Koshas are spoken of as being similar in
shape and one inside the other, the Annamaya or
Material Sheath being the outermost and Ananda-
maya the innermost. J

210. When all the five Sheaths have
been eliminated by the reasoning upon
Sruti passages, what remains as the culmi-
nating point of the process, is the Witness,
the Knowledge Absolute, — the Atman.

[ Sruti passages — those that describe the Atman
negatively, by the Neti neii ( not this, not this ,)
method.

Culmuiating point — beyond which the process of
reasoning or analysis cannot be carried any farther.

VTVEKACHUDAMANI 99

What takes place then is termed the Aparokshd-
nubhuii. Realisation, and the mind is then said to
be in the Samadhi state. ]

211. This self-efhilgent Atman which

IS distinct from the five Sheaths, the

Witness of the three states, the Real, the

Changeless, the Untainted, the everlasting

Bliss,— is to be realised by the wise one as

one's own Self.
[ Untainted— \>y Nescience ; hence Absolute. }

ftiu.^<(^^^ mf^#S *)?iMd!g; ^^r^ r

212. The disciple questioned, "After
these five Sheaths have been eliminated
as unreal, I find nothing, O Teacher, in
this universe but a Void, the absence of
everything. What entity does there at all
remain with which the wise man should
realise his identity?*'

[ The position of the Shunyavddins or Nihilists
who deny that there remains anything positive after
Ihe ullimsite analysis, is set forth ia this Sloka as a

^ VIVEKACHUDAMANl

prima facie view, and the refutation is given in the
next few Slokas. ]

213-4. The Gum answered : Thou hast
tightly said, O learned one ! Thou art
clever indeed in discrimination. That by
which all those modifications such as egoism
etc. and their absence as well which follows
(during deep sleep) are perceived, but
which Itself is not perceived, know thou
that Atman — the Knower — ^through- the
sharpest intellect.

[ The argument is this : The Atman as the eter-
nal Subject must remain always. Otherwise there
being no Subject, knowledge itself will be im-
possible. Even in the Sushupti state there must
be the eternal Subject behind to record the blissful
memory of that state. To take a familiar example :
In a bioscope there must be the screen to allow
the moving pictures to coalesce and form a
connected whole. Motion presupposes rest. So
the ever-changing Prakriti must have behind it ibc
immutable Atman.

Through the sharpest intellect — An echo of Hatha
Upanishad I. Hi. 12. ]

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 97

215. That which is perceived by some-
thing else has for its witness the latter.
When there is no agent to perceive a
thing, we cannot speak of that thing hav-
ing been perceived at all.

216. This Atman is a self-cognised
entity, because It is cognised by Itself.
Hence the individual soul is itself and
directly the Supreme Brahman, and noth-
ing else.

217. That which clearly manifests It'
self in the states of wakefidness, dream
and profound sleep; which is inwardly
perceived in the mind in various forms, as
an unbroken series of egoistic impressions ;
which witnesses the egoism, the Buddhi
etc, which are of diverse forms and modi-

9S VIVEKACHUDAMANT

fications; and which makes Itself felt as-
the Ex'.sieiice-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute;;,
know thou this Atman, thy own Self with-
in thy heart.

[ Accor(.rnyg to lUe Sankhya Plvilosopliy, the
w1k)1c ui»ivf r-se, as it appears to us, is a mixture of
Puiusha ami Pjakiiii. — ot soaieihii>g wliicli im-
pinges on or gives the suggestion to our minds,,
and of liie Hiind \vi>Tch reacts, and covers it, as it
^ere, wiili a cu.iiing ot its own. lu other words^
eveiuhing we perceive is this unknowii something
plus i!ie niinti, or to put it briefly, X + mind.
Veiiania suUsiitutes Brahman for Purusiia and*
postulates- a Nescience as the inscrutable power oi
traiiuj.iM, wliicii ci>v^rs the real nature of Brahtnan-
ami n»ake> it liiink as if It were subject to all sorts.
of change and Inniiation. Atman is only another
joame of' i'lriilwuaM. So, whenever we perceive a
thin<:, iroMi any mental impression, it must be
the Alnian aniP nothing else tiiat we perceive. Only
151 our ignorance we fail to grasp the real nature of
the thing exjierienced (the Atman). and call it
under various names and forms. l50, our egoism,
oar iHieWect, and all mental slates are manifesU'-
ttons of ti»e AtfKrtu and Atmaa altxie. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 99

218. Seeing the reflection of the sun
mirrored in the water of a jar the fool
thinks it is the sun itself. Similarly the
stupid man, through delusion, identifies
himself with the reflection of the Chit
caught in the Buddhi which is Its super-
imposition.

[■^;j//_il,e Aiman \v]»icli is Knowledge Absolute]

V

219. Just as the wise man leaves aside
the jar, the water in it and the reflection
of the sun in that water, and sees the self-
luminous sun which illuminates these three
and is independent of them ;

[ hideptndent crV. — iliese being merely its reflec-
tions, wli:cb serve to sugj^e^l ine leal bun. ]

100 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

%m^ xk^j^vij jkT^T f^'j^i'. wv^.V^

220-2. Similarly, discarding the bod;- , the
Buddhi, and the reflection oi the Ghi^ oi it,
and realising the Witness, the Self, the
Knowledge Absolute, the cause of the mani-
festation of everything, which is hidden in
the recesses of the Buddhi and is ^stinct
from the gross and subtle, elernal, omni-
present, all-pervading, extremely subtle,
which has neither interiot nor ex-erlor, ,
and is identical with oneself, — fully realis-
ing this true nature of oneself, one be-
comes free from sin, and taint, and death
and grief, and becomes the embodiment
of Bliss. Illumined himself, he :s afraid of
none. For a seeker after liberation there
is no other way to the breaking of the
bonds of transmigration than the realisa-
tion of the truth of one's own Self.

[ Bidden Bu(Idhi—li is llie purified Buddhi

ivhich catclies a glimpse of ihe Atman,

The sense of various Sruii p;<ssages (A Advailifc
import is reproiluced in 'these StokftS. The t^adw

./

VIVEKACHUDAMANI lOI

is ync>cix\ny referred to tlie Brihadaranyaka III. viii.
&, 'laiuiriya II. 2. and Sveta-^vatara III. 8.]

223. The realisation of one's identi-
ty N/itli f;lie Brahman is the cause of
liberation from the bonds of Samsara, by
mea.ns of which the wise man attains
Brahman, the One without a second, the
Bliss Absolute.

224. Once having realised the Brahman
one no longer returns to the realm of
transmigration. Therefore, one must fully
realise one's identity with the Brahman.

225. Brahman is Existence, Knowledge^
the Absolute, pure, supreme, self -existent,
eternal and indivisible Bliss, not different
(in reality) from the individual soul, and
devoid of interior or exterior, — there It
reigns tiiumphant.

102 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

226. ^ It is this Supreme Oneness which
alone is real, since there is nothing else
but the Self. Verily, there remains no
other independent entity in the state of
realisation of the highest Truth.

\^ Nothing else — Evenlhing but the Self is an
appearance merely. ]

^\KA H^t?t \^yk TiT^TT^^ irarcf^irrfrn[ I

227. All this universe which appears as of
diverse forms through ignorance, is noth-
ing else but Brahman v/hich is absolutely
free from all the limitations of human
thought.

\^P''reefrom thought — We imagine all sorts

of tilings ilirougli ignoiiince, imt Hraliman is ever
be\oiid lliem, and is liie only Reality. ]

228. A jar, though a modification of
earth, is not different from the earth;
everywhere the jar is essentially the same
as the earth. Why then call it a jar ? — It is
fictitious, a fancied name merely.

l^ Fictitious name merely — Quoted in SQum

from the Chhandogya Upa., Ch. VI. ]

VTVEKACHUDAMANI IO3

^fTPCljk ^sf^^^l'^nTT ^^^^

t r-

229. None can demonstrate that the
essence of a jar is some'ching other than
the earth (of which it is made) . Hence
the jar is merely imagined through delu-
rsion, and the component earth alone is the
abiding reality in respect of it.

230. Similarly, the whole universe being
the effect of the real Brahman, is in reality
nothing but Brahman. Its essence is That,
and it does not exist apart from It. He
who says 'it is,' is still under delusion,—
he babbles like one asleep.

[ Likg one asleep— \. e. incolierently. "|

fy^?n^?Tf 5iir^T^ ft f^^

-^J

104 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

231. Th:s universe is verily Brahman —
such is the august pronouncement of the
Atharva Veda. Therefore this universe is
nothing but Brahman, — for that which i&
superimposed (on something) has no sepa-
rate existence from its substratum.

[ The reference is to Mundaka (II. ii. ii), which
IS one of ihe Upanishads belonging to the Atharva

Veda. ]

232. If the universe were real as it is,
there would be no cessation of the dualistic
element, the Scriptures would be falsified,
and the Lord Himself would become guilty
of an untruth : None of these three is con-
sidered either desirable or wholesome by
the noble-minded.

S^ No cessation...... clement — The world as it i»

would become real, and as such could never be des-
iroyed. Hence the duality wjih all its ugly features
would persist.

Scriptures...... falsified — According to staoDch

AdvaJtins the numerous Advakic texts of the Sniiss*,
inculcating the highest philosophic thought, are
alone considered as bearing out the true im)>OTt o£

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 10$

iheSmlis. to winch the rest of the Vedas must be
subfuiliiialed.

The Lord etc.- beinp: ll.e Revealer of the truths
of ti.e Sniiis. Or the i.lUisieii «nay be to Sri
Krishna's words in the Gna quoted in the next
verse. ]

233. The Lord, who knows the secret
of all things, has supported this view in
the words— "But I am not in them/*
" And the beings are not in Me."

[ Whoknoivs fo^f.— Because He is Omniscient.

" But I am not ^/f."— The reference is to the 4th

and 5lh SU.kas of the 9iii chapter of the Gita

A^'liicli declare thai all existence owes its being to

Brahman which is its subsiratum, yet Absolute. ]

jx^ ^^ ^>? ni^^ ^iHTiw^^mi?: I

234. If the universe be true, let it then
be perceived in the state of deep sleep also.
As it is not at all perceived in that state,
it must be unreal and false, like dreams.

I06 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

235. Therefore the universe does not
-exist apart from the Supreme Self ; and
the perception of its separateness is false
like the qualities (of blueness etc. in the
sky) . Has a superimposed attribute any
meaning apart from its substratum ? It
is the substratum that appears like that
thro dgh delusion .

[ Qualilles of bhieneas etc. — See Sloka 185.
// is the substratum &"€ — The rope ai)[)ears as
the snake. This idea is made clear iu the next
few Slokas. ]

^FcT^'qr ^^f i^r:^: iTcfr^

% 236. Whatever a deluded man perceives
through mistake, is Brahman and Brah-
man alone: The silver is nothing but the
mother-of-pearl. It is Brahman which is
always considered as this universe, where-
as that which is superimposed on the Brah-
man, viz. the universe, is merely a name.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI IO7

237. Hence whatever there manifests.
viz. this universe, is the Supreme Brah-
man Itself, the Real, the One without a
second, Pure, the Essence of Knowledge,
the Taintless, Pacified, devoid of begin-
ning and end, beyond activity, the Essence
of Bliss Absolute.

238. Transcending all the diversities
created by Maya or Nescience, eternal, ever
beyond the reach of pain, indivisible, un-
conditioned, formless, undifferentiated,
nameless, immutable, self-luminous.

239 . Sages realise the Supreme Principle ,
Brahman, — in which there is no differen-
tiation of knower, knowledge and known,
infinite, transcendent, the Essence of
Knowledge Absolute.

io8 VIVEKACHUDAMANr

^ 240.. which can be neither thrown away
nor taken tip, which is beyond the reach
of mind and speech, immeasurable, with-
out beginning and end, the Whole, one^s
very Self, and of surpassing glory.

[ Neither thrown taken «/>— Because It is not)

a material thing but one's Real Self. ]

241-2. If thus the Sruti, in the dictum
''Thou art That" {Tat-Tzvam-Asi), xg:-
peatedly establishes the absolute identity
of Brahman (or Isvara) and Jiva, denoted
by the terms That {Tat) and Thou (Tvani)
respectively, divesting these terms of their
relative associations, then it is the identity
of their implied, not literal, meanings which
is sought to be inculcated, for they are of
contradictory attributes to each other —
like the sun and a glow-worm, the king

VIVEKACHUDAMANI IO9

and a servant, the ocean and a well, or
Mount Meru and an atom.

y Jf ihtts the Sruli elc.—T\\Q reference is to the
sixih Chapter of llie Chhandogya Upanishad,
where Uddalaka Aruni tries to impress on ins son,
Sveiaketu, the identity of Jiva and Brahman in
various ways. ]

243. This contradiction between them
is created by superimposition, and is not
something real. This superimposition, in
the case of Isvara (the Lord) , is Maya or
Nescience, which is the cause of Mahat
and the rest, — and in the case of the Jiva
(the individual soul), listen, — the five
Sheaths, which are the effects of Maya,

stand for it.

\_ Mahat — See note on Sloka 123.

And the rest — the grosser manifestations that
proceed from Mahat.

Five Sheaihs'^^SQQ note on Sloka 125.]

no VIVEKACIIUDAMANI

244. These two are the superim positions
of the Is vara and the Jiva, and when these
are perfectly eliminated there is neither
Isvara nor Jiva. A kingdom is the in-
signia of a king, and a shield of the soldier,
and when these are taken away, there is
neither king nor soldier.

[ JS'either king nor soldier — he is only a man
then. Similailj, if we laive away the omniscience
omnipotence etc. from Isvara, and deficiencies of
knowledge and power etc. from tlie Jiva, on!y
Brahman remains as llie substance of bolh. ]

S3

1^ »^ r^ r^

T'T'^'ar^ ^iiT?ir ^r^q^ se^ro: I

245. The Vedas themselves in the words
"Now then is the injunction" etc., repu-
diates the duality imagined in the Brah-
man. One must needs eliminate those
two stiperimpositions by dint of realisation
supported by the aiilhority of the Vedas.

\'lhe I edas etc, — The reference is lo the Biihad-
aranyaka Upa. II. iii. 6. ]

f?^ rsii '^r^j %^^j ^^^m

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI III

246. Neither this gross nor this subtle
universe (is the Atman) . Being imagined
they are not real, — like the snake seen in
the rope, and like dreams. — Perfectly
eliminating the objective world in this way
by means of reasoning, one should next
realise the oneness that underlies the
Isvara and the Jiva.

247. Hence those two terms (Isvara and
Jiva) must be carefully considered through
their ^?;2^/z><^ meanings, so that their abso-
lute identity may be established. The
method of wholesale rejection will not do,
nor will the method of retaining in toio
do either. One must reason out through
the process which combines the two.

[There are liiree kinds of Lakshana or implied
nieaTiing^. The J^hati, the Ajahaii and the Bh^ga
Lakshana. The first is that in which one of the
terms lias lo give up its primary meaning. For
example, tlie plirase inTT^ir ^T^* <ioes not mean
that a vill;is;e of cowherils is /// ilie Ganges, but on
the G;mges. 'Ihe second kind is that in wliich the
primal y meaning is retained but souiething is sup-

112 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

plied to make it clear, as the sentence 5[%?n" m^FT
means •' a white (horse) is running." In the third
kind of Lakshna each of the terms has to give up
a part of its connotation, see the next Sloka. ]

248-9. Just as in the sentence, ' This is
that Devadatta,' the identity is spoken of,
eliminating the contradictory portions,
so in the sentence 'Thou art That,' the
wise man must give up the contradictory
elements on both sides and recognise the
identity of Isvara and Jiva, noticing care-
fully the essence of both, which is Chzl,
Knowledge Absolute. Thus hundreds of
Scriptural texts inculcate the oneness and
identity of Brahman and Jiva.

[ Coniradictory portions — Such as the differences
of time and place etc. ]

rs •^

' VIVEKACnUDAMANI II3

250. Eliminating the objective world, —
the not-self, by such arguments as ' It is
not gross' etc., (one realises the Atman),
which is self-established, unattached like
the sky, and beyond the range of thought.
Therefore, dismiss this mere phantom of an
objective w^orld which thou perceivest and
which thou hast accepted as thy own self.
By means of the purified understanding
that thou art Brahman, realise thy own
Self, the Knowledge Absolute.

^mJ^ ^^^ ^zjjk ^cT^ ^-^r^&^rr%<t

251. All modifications of earth, such as
the jar etc., which are always accepted by
the mind as real, are (in reality) nothing
but earth. Similarly this entire universe
which is produced from the Real Brah-
man, is Brahman Itself and nothing but

*■

114 VIVEKACHUDAMANf

Brahman. Because there is nothing else
whatever but Brahman, and That is the
only self -existent Reality, our very Self,.
therefore thou art that Pacified, Pure, Su-^
preme Brahman, the One without a
second.

Os

252. As the place, time, objects, knower,
etc. called up- in. dream are all unreal, so
is also the world experienced here in the
w^aking state, for it is- all an effect of one's
own ignorance. Because this body, the
organs, and egoism etc. are also thus un-
real, therefore thou art the Pacified,. Pure^.
Supreme Brahman., the One without at

Stv

-econd.

5X^ ^T'^T ^flw ^fk^^

253. (What i&) erroneously supposed to^
exist in something, is when the truth
about it has been known, nothing; but

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I15

that substratum, and not at all different
from it : The diversified dream universe
(appears and) passes away in the dream
itself. Does it appear on waking as some-
thing distinct from one's own self?

254. That which is beyond caste ancj
creed, family and lineage ; devoid of name
and form, merit and demerit ; transcend-
ing space, time and sense-objects; — that
Brahman art thou, meditate on this in
thy mind.

255. That Supreme Brahman which is •
beyond the range of all speech, but ac-
cessible to the eye of pure illumination ;
which is pure, the Embodiment of Knowl-
edge, the beginningless entity; — that
Brahman art thou, meditate on this in
thy mind.

1 16 VIVEKACHUDAMANJ

256. That which i^ untouched by the
six-fold wave ; meditated upon by the
Yogi's heart, but not grasped by the
sense organs ; which the Buddhi cannot
know; and which is unimpeachable; —
that Brahman art thou, meditate on this
in thy mind.

[ Sixfold wave — viz. decay and death, hunger
and thirst, grief and delusion, which overtake the
body and mind. ]

257. That which is the substratum of
the universe with its various subdivisions,
which are all creations of delusion ; which
Itself has no other support; which is dis-^
tinct from the gross and subtle; which
has no parts; and has verily no exemplar; — -
that Brahman art thou, meditate on this
in thy mind.

VrVEtCACnUDAM ANt ! 1 f

258. That which is free from birth,'
growth, development, waste, disease and
death; which is indestructible; which is
the cause of the projection, maintenance
and dissolution of the universe; — that
Brahman art thou, meditate on this in thy
mind.

259. That which is free from differen-
tiation; whose essence is never non-exis-
tent; which is unmoved like the ocean
without waves; the ever-free ; of indivi-
sible Form; — that Brahman art thou,
meditate on this in thy mind.

Il8 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

260/ That which, though One only, is
the cause of the many; which refutes all
other causes; which is Itself without
cause; distinct from Maya and its effect,
the universe; and independent ;— that
Brahman art thou, meditate on this in thy
mind.

261, That which is free from duality;
which is infinite and indestructible; dis-
tinct from the universe and Maya, —
supreme, eternal; which is undying Bliss;
taintless; — that Brahman art thou, medi-
tate on this in thy mind.

rs rv

262. That Reality which (though One)
appears variously owing to delusion, —
taking on names and forms, attributes
and changes. Itself always unchanged,
like gold in its modifications, — that Biah-

VIVEKACHUDAMANl 1 19

man art thou, meditate on this in thy
mind.

263. That bevond which there is noth-
ing; which shines above Maya even, which
again is superior to its effects, the uni-
verse; the inmost-Self of all. free from dif-
ferentiation; the Real Self; the Existence-
Knowledge-Bliss Absolute; Infinite and
immutable; — that Brahman art thou,
meditate on this in thy mind.

264. On the Truth inculcated above,,
one must oneself meditate in one's mind, by
means of the recognised arguments. By
that means one will realise the Truth free
from doubt etc., like water in the palm ol
one's hand.

[ Inculcated above — in the ten preceding Slokas.
Recognised arguments — that are in harmony with
the Vedas. ]

120 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

f^m^ ^^^ ^^^^ It?^ I

265 . Realising: in this bodv the Knowledg^e
Absohite free from Nescience and its
effects, like the king in an ariny^ and
being ever established in thy own Self, by
resting on that Knowledge, merge the
universe in the Brahman.

266. In the recesses of the Bnddhi there
is the Brahman, distinct from the gross
and subtle, the Existence Absolute, Su-
preme, the One without a second. Ke
who lives in this cave as Brah7Jian^ for
him, O beloved, there is no more entrance
into the mother's v/omb.

[ Cave — The Buddhi is often spoken of thus.
He who lives etc. — He who always thinks of him-
self as Brahman has no more rebirth. ]

r- 'v

iirm ^^3?^^ ^^f^cTT ^TO^TT yrn^':^

ViVEKACITUDAMANr tHi

267. Even after the Truth has been
realised, there remains that strong begin-
ningless, obstinate imprcssioti that one i5
the agent and experiencer, which is the"
cause of one's transmigration. That
impression has to be carefully removed by
living in the Brahman with a constant
identification with the SujDreme Self. The'
sao:es call that liberation which is the
attenuation of Vasanas or impressions here
and now.

[ Atienuatio7t <?/<:.— Because the man v/ho has^
no selfish desires easily attains Mukti. }

•^ r^

268. The idea of ' me and mine' in the
body and organs, which are non-self, — this*
superimposition the wise one must put a
stop to, by indentifying oneself with the
Atman.

269. Realising thy own Inmost Self, the
Witness of the Buddhi and its modifica-'
tions, and constantly revolving on the

122 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

positive thought, *I am He,' conquer this
identification with the non-Self.

270. Relinquishing the observance of
social formalities, giving up all ideas of
trimming up the body, and avoiding too
much engrossment with the Scriptures,
do away with the superimposition that
kas come upon thyself.

271. Owing to the desire to walk after
society, the passion for too much study
of the Scriptures and the desire to keep
the body comfortable, people cannot at-
tain to proper Realisation.

^Ts^rfkg^*. 'ETg^m gT%n irns^ii

272. For one who seeks deliverance
from the prison of this world (Samsara),
those three desires have been designated
t>y the wise as the strong iron fetters to

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I23

shackle one's feet. He who is free from
them truly attains to Liberation.

273. The lovely odour of the Agaru
(agallochum) which is hidden by a power-
ful stench due to its contact with water
etc., (again) manifests itself when the
foreign smell has been fully removed by
mere rubbine.

274. Like the fragrance of the sandal-
wood, the perfume of the Supreme Sglf,
-which is covered with the dust of endless,
virulent desires imbedded in the mind, w^heu
purified by the constant friction of
Knowledge, is (again) clearly perceived.

[ Sandalwood — the ' Agaru ' of the prey|io,iji«
Sloka is meant.

VasaTid in Sanskrit means both ' odo.ux ' .9Jti4
•desire. ]

i^4 tlVEKACHUDAK^Al^f

275. The desire for Self-realisation is
obsctired by the countless desires foT
things other thaii the Self. When they
have been destroyed by the constant at-
tachment for the Self,- the Atman clearly
manifests Itself of Its own accord.

276. As the mind becomes gradually
established in the Inmost Self, it propor-
tionately gives up the desires for external
objects. And when all such desires have
been eliminated^ there takes place the un-
obstructed Realisation of the At man.

277 The Yogi's mind dies, being cons-
tantly fixed on his own (Real) Self. Thence
follows the cessation of desires. There-
fore do away with thy superimposition.

VIVEKACnUDAMANI 12$

278. Tamas is destroyed by both Sattva
and Rajas, Rajas by Sattva, and Sattva
dies when purified. Therefore do away
with thy superimposiLion, through the
help of Sattva.

STR^ 5^^rcT ^jftm f^rfk^ f?rajqr: i

279. Knowing for certain that the Pra-
rabdha work will maintain this body,
remain quiet and do away with thy
superimposition carefully and with forti-
tude .

{ Prdrahdha — the resultant of past Karma that
has led to the present birth. When this is worked
out, the body falls, and Videhamukti is the result.]

280. " I am not the individual soul, but
the Supreme Brahman," — eliminating
thus all that is not-Self, do away with thy
superimposition, which has come through
the momentum of (past) desires.

281. Realising thyself as the Self of all
by meai;s of Scripture, reasoning and thy

126 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

own Realisation, do away with thy supef-
imposition, even when a trace of it seems
to appear.

282. The sage has no connection what-
ever with action, as he has no idea of
accepting or giving up. Therefore, through
constant engrossment on the Brahman
alone, do away wdth thy superimposition.

283. Through the realisation of the
identity of Brahman and the soul, result-
ing from such great dicta as ' Thou art
That' and so forth, do away with thy
superimposition, with a view to strengthen
thv identification with Brahman.

284. Until the identification with this
body is completely rooted out, do away with
thy superimposition with watchfulness
and concentrated mind.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 12/

285. So long as even a dream-like per-
ception of the universe and souls persists^
do away with, thy superiinpo&itioii, O
learned one, without the least break.

[ The u?iiverse and souls — i. e. plurality. ]

286. Without giving the slightest chance
to oblivion on accoiint of sleep, concern
in secular matters or the sense-objects,,
reflect on the Self in thy mind,

287. Shunning from a safe distance the
the body, which has come from parents
and itself consists of flesh and impurities^
— as one does an outcast, — be thou Brah-
man and realise the consummation of thy

life.

[ Shunning — i. e. giving up all identification of
the body which is very impure. J

^ro"^T5d JTIT^T^ ^^T?m5T q^Trm% \

288. Merging the finite soul in the Su-
preme Self, hke the space enclosed by a
jar in the infinite space, by means of medi-

12^ VIVEKACHUDAMANI

tation on their identity, always keep quiet,
O sage.

289. Becoming thyself the self -effulgent
Brahman, the substratum of all phenom-
ena,— as that Reality, give tip both the
macrocosm and the microcosm, like two
filthy receptacles.

[Giz'^e up vikrocosm — ceasing to care for the

whole universe, which is other than the Self, and
which pales into insignificance before the majesty
of the Self.]

290. Transferring the identification now
rooted in the body, to the Atman, the
Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute, and
discarding the subtle body, be thou ever
alone, independent.

[ Discardi7ig — ceasing to identify oneself with.]

291. That in which there is this reflec-
tion of the universe, as a city is reflected
in a mirror, — that Brahman am I ; —

VIVEKACnUDAMANI 1 29

knowing this thou wilt attain the con-
summation of thy life.

292. That which is real and thy own
primeval Essence, that Knowledge, and
Bliss Absolute, the One without a second,
which is beyond form and activity — at-
taining That one should cease to identify
oneself with one's false bodies, like an
actor giving up his assumed mask.

[ liaise bodies — the gross, subtle and causal
bodies, which are superimpositions upon the Atman.

Like a?t actor etc. — When the actor has played
his part, he is simply a man. So the man of reali-
sation is one with Brahman, his real Essence. ]

f^ •v

293. This objective universe is absolute- 1^
ly unreal ; neither is Egoism a reality, for
it is observed to be momentary. How
cau the perception that I know all, be

130 - VIVEIvACHUDAffTANr

true of Egoism etc. which are momentary?

\ The pei-GCption. .all — Man's ml4«rent belief'

m the omHiseience of. the Atman is mea^nt. ]

5% H^T R^ CRT ^fir: 5^^4

294. But the real 'I' is that which,
witnesses- the Ego and the rest. It exists-
always, even in. the state of profound
sleep. The Sniti herself says, " It is birth-
less, eternal"' etc.. Therefore the Param-
atman is different from, the gro>ss and
subtle bodies.

\ Exists ahvays sleep- — as the witness- of all-

experience.

The Sruii &'c. — The reference is- ta the Katha>
Upanlshad, I. ii. l8.]

295. It is the knower of all changes 'in
things, subject to change, therefore It
should be eternal and chan«:eless. The
unreality of the gross and subtle bodies is^

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I3I

ao^aln and again clearly noticed in imagi-
nation, dream and profound sleep.

[The unreaiity sleep: Because the subtle is

not perceived in the Sushupti state and the gross
body in ilie dream and Sushupti states. ]

296. Therefore give np thy identifica-
tions with this lump of flesh — the gross
body, as well as with the Ego or the subtle
body, which are both imagined by the
Buddhi. Realising thy own Self, which
is Knowledge Absolute and not to be denied
in past, present and future, — attain to
Peace,

[ Imagined by Buddhi — Because they are not in
Annan and our ignorance conjures them up through
the Buddhi or determinative faculty.

Denied &'c, — Because the Atman transcends
time, ]

f^l^w '^^\^\^ ^t^r^r-

132 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

>( 297. Cease to identify thyself with
family, lineage, name and form which per-
tain to the body, which is like a rotten
corpse (to a Jnanin) . Similarly giving up
the ideas that thon art the agent and so
forth, which are attributes of the subtle
body, be thou the Essence of Bliss Abso-
lute.

[ Rotten corpse — The body appears as living only
through the erroneous identification of the Buddhi^
and when that ceases on realisation, the body is
nothing but a putrid corpse, to be shunned.

Attributes of the subtle body. The Jnani must
realise his identity with the Atman alone. ]

298. Other obstacles are also observed
to exist for men, which lead to transmigra-
tion. The root of them, for the above
reasons, is the first modification of Nes-
cience they call Egoism.

[ Other obstacles— ~s\iq\\ as desires etc.
For the above reasojis — because but for Egoism,
which is a product of nescience, there would not
be any false identification, and therefore no serious
. trouble. J

cJf^vT ^^m^THT gf^^rTlT f^gWT IR^S.11

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI J 33

299. So long as one has any relation
with this wicked Ego, there should not be
tlie least talk about Liberation, which is
unique.

300. Freed from the clutches of Egoism,
man attains to his real nature, as the moon
from those of the planet Rahu. He be-
comes pure, infinite, eternally blissful and
self-luminous.

[ Graha in Sanskrit means both * planet ' and
* seizure.' The eclipses of the sun and moon are
popularly ascribed by Hindu mythology to the
periodical attacks by their enemy Rahu, a demon
whom they prevented from drinking the nectar. ]

f^ r^.

^r ^ 5?: ^TSlTJTTrT STrfTcTT

301. That which has been created by
the Buddhi extremely deluded by Nescience,
and which is perceived in this body as 'I
am such and such,' — when that Egoism is
totally destroyed, one attains an un-
obstructed identity with the Brahman.
[lam such and such — I am strong or weak,

134 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

learned or ignorant, happy or miserable and so
fortii. ]

f^^r5ir^^JT^m?Tr ^rt^ctt f^r^^ m^^^^

302. The treasure of the Bliss of Brah-
man is coiled round by the mighty deadly
serpent of Egoism, and guarded for its
own use by means of its three fierce hoods
consisting of the three Gunas. Only the
wise man destroying it by severing its
three hoods with the great sword of Reali-
sation in accordance with the teachings
of the Srutis can enjoy this treasure which
confers bliss.

[In this Sloka Egoism i« compared to a three-
headed snake. Sattva, Rajas and Tamas — balance,
activity and inertia — are spoken of as its three
hoods. The way to destroy it is through Realisation.
When Egoism is gone, one is conscious of his
real nature as Brahman. The appropriateness of
the metaphors is obvious. ]

303. As long as there is a trace of
poisoning left in the body, how can one

tivekaciiudama:ni 135

h'ojfc for recovery? Similar is the effect of
Egoism on the Yogi's Liberation.

304. Through the complete cessation ol
Egoism, through the stoppage of the diverse
mental waves due to it, and through the
discrimination of the inner Reality, one
realises that Reality as 'I am This.'

[A/en/al waves — such as doubt, wrong notion etc.]

305. Give up immediately thy identi-
fication with the Egoism — the agent —
which is by its nature a modification,
which is endued with a reflection of the
Self, and which diverts one from being
established in the Self, — identifying thy-
self with which thou hast come by this
relative existence, full of the miseries of
birth, decay and death, — though thou art
the Witness, the Essence of Knowledge
and Bliss Absolute.

136 VIVEKACHUDAMANi

[ Modificatioji — of Nescience, and therefore noo-
peimanent.

Endued elc. — This makes it look intellio^ent.
Relative existence — Samsara or transmigration.]

306. But for th)- identification with that
Egoism there can never be any transmi-
gration for thee who art eternally the
same, the Knowledge Absolute, omnipre-
sent, the Bliss Absolute, and of untarnished
glory.

[ Untarnished glory — compare Swelaswatara
Vi.19. ]i

307. Therefore, destroying this Egoism,
thy enemy, — which appears like a thorn
sticking in the throat of one taking his
meal — through the great sword of Reali-
sation, enjoy directly and freely the bliss of
thy own empire, the majesty of the Alaian.

VrVKKACIIUDAMANi tj^

,[ Great sword — Mnhdsi. Tlie phrase, as it is. ig
applicable to only one side of the comparison,
namely, ' the enemy,' but not to * the tliorn,' for
which it should be interpreted to mean ' a sharp
knif

308. Therefore, checking the activities
of Egoism etc., and giving np all attach-
uient through the realisation of the Su-
preme Reality, be free from all duality
through tlie enjoyment of the Bliss of Self,
and remain qniet in the Brahman, for
thou hast attained thy infinite nature.

[ Egois7n etc. — Egoism \Yith its two forms, ' I '
and ' mine.']

"^ rv

r^ »^

309. Even thongh completely rooted out, "f*
this terrible Egoism, if revolved in the
mind for a moment only, returns to life
and creates hundreds of mischiefs, like a

138 VIVEKACHUDAMANl

cloud itskered in by the wind during tlie
rainy season.

sr^m^TCR^^Tnr^TTg II?? oil

310. Overpowering this enemy, Egoism,
not a moment's respite should b& given to
it by thinking on sense-objects. That is
verily the cause of its coming back to life,
like water to a citron tree that has al-
most dried up.

311. He alone who has identified him-
self with the bodv is o^reedv after senses
pleasures. How can one devoid of body-idea
be greedy (like him) ? Hence the tendency
to think on sense-objectsis verily the cause
of the bondage of transmigration, giving
rise to an idea of distinction or duality.

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 1 39

312. When the effects are developed, the
seed is also observed to be such, and when
the efiects are destroyed the seed also is
seen to be destroyed. Therefore one must
subdue the effects.

[ Effects — actions done with selfish motives.
Seed — desire for sense-pleasures.
Tlie next Sloka explains this.

313. Through the increase of desires
selfish work increases, and when there is an
increase of selfish work there is alwavs an
increase of desire also. And man's trans-
migration is never at an end.

♦ r^

314. For the sake of breaking the chain
of transmio^ration the Sannvasin should
burn to ashes those two for by thinking
of sense-objects and doing selfish acts
lead to an increase of desires.

i40 VlVEKACPIUftAMANf

315-6. Augmented by these two, desires
produce one's transmigration. The way
to destroy these three, however, lies in
looking upon everything, under all cir-
cumstances, always, everywhere and in all
respects, as Brahman and Brahman alone.
Through the strengthening of the longing
to be one with Brahman those three are
annihilated.

[ I'hese three — selfish work, dwelling on sense-
objects and sense-hankering for ihem. The next
Sloka gives the steps to realisation. ]

317. With the cessation of selfish action
the brooding on sense-objects is stopped,
which is followed by the destruction of
desires. The destruction of desires is
Liberation, and this is considered as
Liberation-in-life.

318. When the desire for realising the
Brahman has a marked manifestation the
egoistic desires readily vanish, as the most

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 14I

intense darkness effectively vanishes be-
fore the glow of the rising sun.

319. Darkness and the numerons evils
that attend on it are not noticed when
the sun rises. Similarly on the realisa-
tion of the Bliss Absolute there is neither
bondage nor the least trace of misery.

320. Causing the external and internal
universes which are now perceived to
vanish and meditating on the Reality, the
Bliss Embodied, one should pass one's time
watchfully, if there be any residue of
Prarabdha work left.

[ Exiertial atid internal universes — the worlds
of maUer and thought. The former exists outside
of man, whereas the latter he himself creates by
the power of thought.

Causing to vanish — through the eliminating

142 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

process, ' Neti, Neti '—Brahman is not this, not

this, etc. ]

321. One should never be careless in
one's steadfastness to Brahman. Bhagavan
Sanatkumara, who is Brahma's son, has
called inadvertence to be death itself.

[ Sa7mtkumara &c. — In the celebrated Sanat-
sujata-Samvada (chapters 40-45, Udyoga Parva,
Mahabharata) — the conversation between Sanat-
kumara and King Dhritarashtra — there occur words
like the following — ^^xK % ^^^Tt ^CfR— " I call
inadvertence itself as death," ' &c.

Brahmd's son — and therefore a high authority on
spiritual matters. ]

5T srRT^r^^^rs??fr ^Tf?r?r: ^'^^^^Tct: i

•v

322. There is no greater danger for the
J7ta7itn than carelessness about his own
real natiire. From this comes delusion,
thence egoism, this is followed by bondage,
and then comes misery.

323. Finding even a wise man hanker-
ing after sense-objects, oblivion torments

VIVEKACHUDAMANr 143

him tlirough the evil propensities oi the
Biiddhi, as a woman does her doting"
paramour.

[The memory of his sweetheart haunts the man
and he is miserable.]

324. As sedge, even if removed, does V
not stay away for a moment but covers
the water again, so Maya or Nescience also
coders even a wise man if he is averse to
meditation on the Self.

[ The sedge has to be prevented from closing in>
by means of a bamboo or some other thing.
Meditation also is necessary to keep Nescience
away. ]

» *s

Qr^?T^g;?T ^^r^ r^TfiTT^f

*- <>

^r^g^ ^f^^cT^^^cTct: I

•n r-

Simmer: sr^3^ ^rm^^j^:

325. If the mind ever so slightly strays
from the Ideal, and becomes outgoing,
then it goes down and down, jiisl: as a
play-ball inadvertently dropped on the
staircase bounds down from one step to
another.
[Ideal — Brahman. Cf, IMundaka II. ii. 3-4.

144 VIVEKACIIUDAMANI

What a terrible and graphic warning to happy-
go-lucky aspirants ! ]

326. The mind that is attached to the
sense-objects reflects on their qtiahties;
from mature reflection arises desire, and
after desiring a man sets about having that
thing.

[ An echo of Gita, 11. 62-63. ]

•s r^

327 . Hence to the discriminating knower
of Brahman there is no worse death than
inadvertence with regard to concentra-
tion. But the man who is concentrated
attains complete success. (Therefore)
carefully concentrate thy mind (on Brah-
man) .

328. Through inadvertence a man
deviates from his real nature, and the man
who has thus deviated falls. The fallen

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I45

man invariably comes to ruin, but is never
seen to rise up ag^ain.

m^^F^rq^^?fr ir^ '4jif 3% 7T^: ^r>: iiBv5l

329. Therefore one shoujd give up re-
flecting on sense-objects, which is the
root of all mischief. He who is com-
pletely aloof even while living, is alone
aloof after the dissolution of the body.
The Vajurveda declares that there is fear
for one who sees the least bit of distinction.

] Yajurveda «jV. — The Taiiiiriya Upanishad (II.
vii.) which belongs to the Vajurveda. J

^^r ^rr ^rft f^rrfW^'r

^^rf^cT nT^crfTj-T iTJTr^R?^ \\\\^\\

330. Whenever the wise man sees the
least difference in the infinite Brahman,
at once that which he sees as different
through mistake, becomes a source 01
terror to him. ^

146 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

■ft* r-s

331. He who identifies himself with the
objective universe which has been, denied
by the Vedas, Smritis and hundreds of
inferences, experiences misery after misery,,
like a thief, for he does something for-
bidden.

[ The thfef rs pmiisiied for stealing with im-
prisonment etc., and the man who idenlifees him-
self with the not-Self^ suffers infinite miseries. Jj

332. He whohas devoted himself to medi-
tation on the Reality (Brahman) , and is
free from Nescience attains to the eternal
glory of the Atman. But he who dwells^
on the unreal (the undverse) , is destroyed..
That this is so is evidenced in the case of
one who is not a thief and one who is a
thief.

[One who is not a thief etc. — The allusion is to-
the hot-axe test applied m ancknt limes i<y persons
charged with theft etc. An axe would be made red-
hot and the accused would be asked to hold it m

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I47

his hand. If his hand was not burnt, it was a
proof that he was innocent, but if it was burnt,
he would be convicted and subjected to the usual
punishments. The Chhandogya Upanishad VI.
xvi. makes use of such a parable, to which the
present Sloka refers. ]

333. The Sannyasin should give up
dwelling on the unreal which causes
bondage, and should always fix his
thoughts on the Atman as ' I myself am
This.' For the steadfastness in Brahman
through the realisatioil of one's identity
with It, gives rise to bliss and thoroughly
removes the misery born of Nescience,
which one experiences (in the ignorant
state) .

irrc^r f%%^: mi:r?T ^r^

334 The dwelling on external objects
will only intensify its fruits, viz. further
evil propensities which grow worse and

148 VIVEKACHUDAAIANI

worse. Knowing this through discrimi-
nation one should avoid the external ob-
jects and constantly apply oneself to medi-
tation on the Atman.

^m f?fftr^ ^^W' ar^^^TT

335. When the external world is shut
out, the mind is cheerful; cheerfulness of
the mind brings on the vision of the
Paramatman. When He is perfectly real-
ised the chain of birth and death is broken.
Hence the shutting out of the external
world is the stepping-stone to Libera-
tion.

rv <v »^ rs

336. Where is the man who being
learned, able to discriminate the real from
the unreal, believing the Vedas as author-
ity, realising the Atman, the Supreme Rea-
lity, and being a seeker after Liberation, —
will, like a child, consciously have recourse

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI I49

to the unreal (the iiniverse) which will
cause his fall ?

[ Like a child — i, e, foolishly. ]

Zlil . There is no Liberation for one who
has attachment for the body etc., and the
liberated man has no identification with
the body etc. The sleeping man is not
awake, nor is the waking man asleep, for
these two states are of contradictory
nature.

338. He is free who knowing through
his mind the Self in moving and iinmov-
ing objects and observing It as their subs-
tratum, gives up all superim positions and
remains as the Absolute and the infinite
Self.

150 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

•^ 339. To realise oneself as the Self of
the whole universe is the means of get-
ting rid of bondage. There is nothing
higher than the identity of oneself with
the whole universe. One realises this state
by excluding the objective world through
steadfastness in the eternal Atman.

340. How is the exclusion of the ob-
jective world possible for one who has an
identification with the body, whose mind
is attached to the perception of external
objects, and who performs various acts
for that end? This exclusion of sense-
objects from the mind should be carefully
practised by the sages who have renounced
all kinds of duties and actions and objects,
who are passionately devoted to the
eternal Atman, and who wish to possess an

undying bliss.

[ Duties — belonging to various stations in life.
Aeiions — i.e. selfish actions. O^yVr/j— sense -objects.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 151

3A1. To the Sannyasin who has gone
through the act of hearing, the Sniti
passage, ''Calm, self-controlled'^ etc., pres-
cribes Samadhi, for his realisation of the
universe as his own self.

Hearing — ihe truth from the lips of the Guru,
after the prescribed manner.

"'Calm, self-cmitrolled'^ £=fr. — The reference is
to Brihadaranyaka Upa. IV. iv. 23. ]

342. Even wise men cannot suddenly
destroy egoism after it has once become
strong, barring those who are perfectly
calm through the Nirvikalpa Samadhi.
Desires are verily the effect of innumer-
able births.

[ .Xifvikalpa Samadhi — the highest kind of
Samadhi in which all relative ideas are transcendeci
and the Atman is realised as It is. The term has
been already explained. ]

152 VIVEKACIIUDAMANI

343.^ The Projecting Power, throtigh the
aid of strong Veiling Power, connects a
man with the syren of the egoistic idea
and distracts him through the attributes
of that.

The Veiling and Projecting Powers of Prakiiti
or Maya have been aheady dealt wills,

xM tributes of that — such ideas as that 'I am the
doer ' and so fortli. ]

344. It is extremely difficult to conquer
the Projecting Power iinless the Veiling
Power is perfectly rooted out. And cover-
ing over the Atman naturally vanishes
when the subject is perfectly distinguished
from the objects, like milk from water.
But the victory is undoubtedly (complete
and) free from obstacles when there is no
oscillation of the mind due to unreal sense-
objects.

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 1S3

r^

345. Perfect cliscriniinatioii brought on
by direct realisation distinguishes the
true nature of the subject from that of
the object, and breaks the bond of dehi-
sion created by IMaya ; and there is no
more transmigration for one who had
been freed from this.

346. The knowledoe of the identity of
Brnhman and Jiva entirely consumes the
inipenelrable forest of Avidya or Nescience.
For one who has realised their state of
Oneness, is there any seed left for future
transmigration ?

347. The veil that hides Truth vanishes
only when the Reality is fully realised.
(Thence folio v.'s) the destriiction of false
kno\vled2:e and the cessation of nriserv
broiU{ht about bv the distraction caused
by that.

154 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

348. These three are observed in the
case of a rope when its real nature is
fully known. Therefore the wise man
should know the real nature of things for
the breaking of his bonds.

^'FrTHrmrJTT g ^^rr^ ^t^^^j ii?X«»i

349-50. Like iron manifesting as sparks
through contact with fire the Buddhi
manifests itself as knower and kncv.'n
through the inherence of Brahman. As this
secondary manifestation — the effects of
Buddhi are observed to be unreal in the
case of delusion, dream and imagination,
similarly the modifications of Prakriti, from
Egoism down to tlie body and all sense-
objects are also unreal. Their unreality is
verily due to their being subject to change

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 1 55

everv moment. But the Atman never
changes.

[Li/ct' iron &c. — Iron, itself, is never incande*;-
cent. it is fire that makes it ap)pear so. Similarly
the intcllif^ence of Brahman is imparted to Buddtii.

The \v(ir(i Jrr^rf? can be disjoined in two wavs ;

viz. as i^f^r f-^rf? or asjn^-!-^nf% the first gives
us the meaning of ' sparks " and the second tiial of
knower and known, i. e, subject and object.

The viodificaiions are also unreal — because

they, too, are effects and derivatives of Prakriii and
depend on tlieir perception by the Buddhi. ]

351. The Paramatman is ever of the na-
ture of eternal, indivisible knowledge one
withoiit a second, the Witness of Buddhi
and the rest, distinct from the real and
unreal, the implied meaning of the term
and idea 'I,' the embodiment of inward,
eternal bliss.

[ The implied meaning — divesting it of its acci-
dental condili<;ns of time and circumstances. See
Notes on Slokas 248-9. ]

156 VIVEKACHUDAMAN!

^Y^r ftrgr^: ^^^Jr^ JaT^^frT li^H^II

352. The wise man, d'scriniinating thus
the real and the unreal, ascertaining the
Truth through his eye of illumination,
and realising his own Self which is Know-
ledge Absolute, gets rid of the obstructions
and directlv attains Peace.

r Truth — I'he ideniitv of jiva and T3riihman-
Obstructions — -meiuioned in Sloka 347.]

Z^o. When the Atman — che One with-
out a second — is realised by means of the
NirvikalpavSamadhi, then the heart's knot
— viz., ignorance — is totally destroyed.

354. Such imaginations as 'Thou,' 'I'
or ' This' take place through the defects
of Buddhi. But when the Param atman,
the Absolute, one without a second, mani-
fests Itself in vSamadhi, all such imagina-
tions are dissolved for him, through the

VIVEKACMUDAMANI 1 57

realisation of the Truth of Atman.

jorr-'d'r 3[r??T: q^'g'T^^r: ^^rr^^^T^Tf:: ^mra^

355. The Sannyasins, cahn, self-con-
troiled, perfectly retiring; from the sense-
world, forbearing, and devoting himself to
the practice of Samadhi, always reflects
on his own self being the Self of the whole
universe . Destroying completely by this
means the imaginations which are due to
the gloom of ignorance, he lives blissfully
in Brahman, free from action and oscil-
lation of the mind.

\ Forbearing — having forbeararce or fortitude.

Free from aciion—x. e. selfish action. ]

356. Those alone are free from the
bondage of transmigration who, attainmg
Samadhi, have merged the objective world,
the sense-organs, the mind, nay, his very
ego, in the Atman, the Knowledge Abso-

158 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

lute, — and none else, who but dabble in
second-hand talks.
\_dabble talks. — Reading them from books etc.]

•s »v

357. Following the diversity of the
supervening conditions (Upadhis) a man
is apt to think of himself as also full of
diversity; but with the removal of these
he is again his own self, the Immutable.
Therefore the wise man should ever devote
himself to the practice of Nirvikalpa
Samadhi, for the dissolution of the Upadhis .

[When the rose is before the crystal, it also
looks red, but when it is removed, the crystal again
is transparent. ]

358. The man who is attached to the
Real becomes the Real, through his one-
pointed devotion. Just as the cockroach
thinking intently on the bhrainara is
transformed into a bhra,nara.

[ The reference is to the popular belief that the
cockroach, through fright, does actually turn green

VIVKKACHUDAMANI 1 59

when caiifjhl by the worm known as Bhramarakita.J

359. Just as the cockroach, giving up
the attachment foraU other actions, thinks
intently on the bhraniara and becomes
transformed into that worm, exactly in
the same manner the Yogin meditating on
tne Truth of the Paramatman, attains to
It, through his one-pointed devotion to
That.

360. The Truth of the Paramatman is
extremely subtle, and cannot be reached
by the gross outgoing tendency of the
mind. It is only accessible to the nobie
souls with perfectly pure minds, by means
of Samadhi brought on by an extraordi-
nary fineness of the mental state.

l60 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

361. As gold purified by thorough heat-
ing on the fire gives up its impurities and
attains its own histre, so the mind, through
meditation, gives up its impurities of
Sattva, Rajas and Tamas, and reaches the
Reality of Brahman.

362. When the mind, purified" thus by
constant practice, is merged in Brahman,
then the Samadhi passes on from tJie
Savikalpa to the Nirvikalpa stage, and
leads directly to the realisation of the Bliss
of Brahman, the One without a second.

363. By this Samadhi are destroyed all
desires which are like knots, all (selfish)
■work is at an end, and inside and out
there takes place everywhere and always

VIVKKAC1IUDAMA«I J6l

lihe manifestation of one's real nature, —
withoat any cffor!:.

364. Reflection should be considered a
'•^"hundred times superior to hearing, and
• meditation a hundred thousand times su-

pcrior to reflect-ou even, but the Nirvi-
kalpa Samadhi is simply infinite in its
results.
[ Innnife etc. — Aiu! ilier^fore bears no com-

•JTF^m ^^cT'Tr 5T5fin%:

365. By the Nirvikalpa Samadhi the
Truth of Brahman is clearly and definitely
realised, but not otherwise, for then the
mind, being unstable by nature, is apt to
be mixed up with other perceptions.

I^' ^IVEKACHUDAMAKr

366. Hence witii yatir mind calm ant^^
the senses controlled alm^ays drown the/
mind, in the Paramatman who is within^,
and through the realisation of your identity,
with Brahman destroy the darknes-s created-^
by. Nesciencie which is without beginning'^

irv . <>. fN

J67. The first steps to Yoga are control'
ot speech, non-receiving of gifts, enter-
taining no hope, freedom from activity,,
and always living in a retired place,

; Gifts — i. e, superfluous gifts. ] ''

1*^ f*^ f^N

n

^3^^^ ^^10^ ^ir?r m^^ 57r^r^t^^5TT 1

.Too... Living in a retired place serves to>
control the sense-organs, control of the
[i^ense^ helps to control the mind, through
control of the mijid, egoism is destroyed,^
and this again, gives the Yogin an uu —
Broken, realisation of the Bliss of Brahman.
T,herefore the man of reflection should air-
ways strive only to 'Control the mind, .

n

tlVEKACHUDAMANf 165

5^T r^^ ^=55 =^ ffe^Tf^mr i
f^^r^^ mf^r{ ^Tm k^^^^ ii^^^il >

369. Restrain speech in the Manas, and
restrain Manas in the Buddhi; this again;
restrain in the Witness of Buddhi, andj
merging that also in the Infinite Absohite
Self, attain to snpreme Peace.-

[Speech — This includes all the sense-organs as weli
Witness — i. c. the Jivatman or individual aspect
of the Self.

In this Sloka which reproduces in part Katha*
Upa. L iii, 13, one is asked to ascend higher and
higher, restraining successively the sense-activities,
and mental activities, from the gross to the fine, tiif
at last one is lost in Samadhi. ]

370. The body, Pranas, organs, Manas^ j
Buddhi and the rest, with wl^ichsoever of
these Upadhis the mind is associated, the
Yogin is transformed, a& it were , into that,

371. When this is stopped,, the man of;
teftectioB is foxiud to be easily detached :

164 VIVEKACHUPAMANI

from everyth'tiof and gets the experience 0}
^n abiinctance of everla«iling Blss,

CT?^^tJTrrT ^rV^^mr BirxWi^^^ 5^^^ I

* r

372. It IS the niau oi d spass on (Vai^a-
frygun) aipiie who :s tit ioy Ms ijilein^l
as well cs e?:lernai reuinio^iaiion, ipr tli^
dispass onale man, out of the desne tp be
free, relnqu shes both lulernal an^ exter-
nal attachment.

373. It is only the dispassionate man
-vyho, being thoroughly grounded iq Brah-
man, can give up the external at! achinent
for the sense-objects and the internal
attachment for egovsm etc.

[ t.'goism ^.V.— i, c. fiil inotiificfiiioiis pf llic i>MMd.]

374. Know, O wise one, dlspasslon and
Realisation to be like the two wings of a
bird in the case of a man. Unless both
/ire there, none can, with the help cfi

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 16$

cither one, reach the creeper of Libera*
tion that grows on the top of an edifice,
as it were.

[]NTukii has been compared to a creeper growing
on i\u'. mp f»f a lufiy ImiMini^. a tentple for in-
stance, as ii is iiiacce!<sil>le to llie ordinary man. ]

375. For the extremely dispassionate
mail alone there "'s Sainadhi, and the man
of Samadhi alone gets si^eady Realisation;
the man who has realised the Truth is
alone free from bondage, and the free
soul only experiences eternal Bliss.

376. For the man of self-control I do
not find any better instrument of happi-
ness than dispassion, and if that is coupled
with a highly pure realisation of the
Self, it conduces to the suzerainty of
absolute Independence; and since this is-

l66 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

the gateway to the damsel of everlasting
Liberation, therefore for thy welfare, be
dispassionate both internally and external-
ly, and always fix thy mind on the eternal
Self.

I Suzerainty etc, — Because the Realisation of
the Self, ihe One without a second, is the real inde-
pendence, for it is everlasting Bliss and there is
nobody to dispute it. }

«*^»

Zn . Sever thy craving for sense-objects
which are like poison, for it is the very
image of death, and giving up thy pride
of caste, family and order of life, fling
actions to a distance ; give up thy identi-
fication with such unreal things as the
body and the rest, and fix thy mind on the
Atman. For thou art really the Witness,
the Brahman, unshackled by the rnind,
the One without a second, and Supreme.

^^ vmm ^TTO ^^fut ^^p:^ ^rirF?"^

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 56;

378. Fixino^ the mind finaly on the
Ideal, Brahman, and restraining the ex-
ternal oro-ans in their respective centres;
with the body held steady, and taking no
thoii<rht for its main^-enance; attainin|»:
the identity wHh Brahman; and heinj?
one with It, always drink joyfully of the
Bliss of Brahman in thy own Self, wiHi-
• ont a break. What is the nse of other
things which are entirely hollow ?

{Resiraini^t^ centres— \. e. not allowing them

to go outward.

Other MrV/.<^j— pursued as means of happiness. j

^nrrirf^T^^ ^^^^ittt^ -r-.^^^frmiT^ i

379. Giving: np the thonght of the not^
Self which is evil and productive of misery,
think of the Self, the Bliss 1^bsclnte,whici:'
conduces to Liberation.

'^ r-

.380. Here shines eternally the Atman,

l6$ VIVEKACHUDAMANI

tile Self-efftilgent Witness of everyt&ing'i,
which has the Buddhi for Its seat. Makr
lug this Atmaa which is distinct from
the unreat> tke Ideal, meditate on It as
thy own Self,,, excluding all other thought.

381. Reflecting on this Atman conti-
nuously aad without any foie:gn thought
intervening, one must distinctly realise It
to be one's own real Self.

3S2. Strengthening one's identification
with This, and giving that up with egoism
and the rest^ one must live without any
concern for them, as if they were trifling":
things, like a cracked jar or the like*

383. Fixing the purified mind in th&
Self,. the Witness, the Knowledge Abso-
lute, and slowly making it still, one mugt.
then realise one's own Infinite SeH^.

VIVEKACIIUDAMANTT l6<3p

384. One tliould behold the^ Atman,the
Indivisible and Infinite, free from all
Upadhis (s'lpervenlng conditions) of the
body, organs, Pranas, Manas and egoism
etc. which are creatiens of one'^s own>
ignorance,— 'like the infinite sky.

385. The sky divested of the hundreds
of Upadhis such as a jar, a pitcher^
a receptacle for grains, a needle, and so
forth, is one, and not diverse; exactly
in a similar way, the pure Brahman, when
divcsled of egoism etc., is verily One.

386. The Upadhis from Brahnid down
to a clump of grass are all simply unreal.
Therefore one should realise one*s owrii

^7© VIVEKACHUDAMANl

Infinite Self as ever identified with his
being.

[ From Brahmd c^c. — ^^Even the position of
Creator is a pas^^ing- phase of the Self which is
greater than all Its conditions. ]

^^ ^F^r ^r%T^ fff^sr^

387. That in which somethino^ is ima-
gined to e-'c'st throtio^h delusion, is, when
rightly d'scriminated, that thing itself,
and not d'stinct from it. When the delu-
sion is sfone, the reality about the snake
falsely perceived, becomes the rope. vSimi-

larly the universe is in reality the Atman.

[Tlie rope is always the rope and never act'ially
turns into a snake ; similarly the universe also is
Brahnrjan, ahvays. ]

388. The Self is Brahma, the Self is
Vishnu, the Self is Indra, the Self is Shiva ;
the Self is all this universe. Nothing
-exists except the Self.

W?rf : ^^t ^^ ^T%: ^^ ^

VIVEKACHUDAMAMI I7I

389. The Self is within, and the vSelf is
without; the Self is before and the Self
is behind; the Self is on ihe south and
the Self is on the north ; the Self likewise
is above as well as below.

[ An echo of ^Iiindak;i 11. ii. 11.]

^'^ ^^^^^iT ^of ^5ir ^^r I

390. As the wave, the foam, the whirl-
pool and bubble etc. are all in essence
but water, similarly the Chit (Knowledge
Absohite) is all this, from the body up to
egoism. Everything is verily the Chit,
homogeneous and pure.

\_From the body egoism. — See Sloka 384. ^

•N

391. All this universe cognised by
speech and mind is nothii?g but Brahman;

1/2 VIVEKACIIUDAMANI

there is nothing besides Brahman which
exists beyond the utmost range of Prakriti.
Are the pitcher, jug, or jar etc. ktuov'/n to
be distinct from the earth of wiv'ch they
are composed ? It is the deluded man
who talks of 'Thou* and 'I,' as an effect of
the wine of Maya.

[ Pitcher etc. — The difference, if any, is only in
name and form. ]

392. The Sruti, in the passage, "Where
one sees nothing else etc.,'* declares by
an accumulation of verbs the absence of
duality, in order to remove the false super-
impositions.

[ Where one sees &'c. — The reference is to
Chhandogya VII. xxiv.i, — *'Wliere op^e sees nothing
else, hears nothing- else, knows noliiiug else — that
is the Infinite." That is, the Brahman is tlie only
Reality there is.

J^aise superitfipositions — i. e. consiJerin<2^ the-
Knower, Knowledge and Known a^ distinct en-
tities. ]

^^^ ^t sTi? Rfiif^ ^r^K \\\^\\\

VIVLKACHUDAMANI I73

393. The Supreme Brahman is, like the
sky, pure, absohite, iiifniile, motionless
and clian|,cless, devoid of interior or ex-
terior, tlie One Jix'slcnce, without a
second, and is one's own EcH. is there
any olher oL;ject of Knowledge (than
Brahman) ?

[ .-Ikv other nhjtct fec.-lu oil er f\oids, Drab'-
man i.^ buiti hiilij* v.< anii tjhjcci. ]

m.?T 55:5 ^?i^: ^^Tfi^ngn: ^jpt

394. What is the use of dilating on thij
subject t The Jiva is no olher than Brah-
man; th*s whole extended universe is
Brahman Itself; the Sruti inculcates the
Brahman without a second; and it is an
indubitable fact that people of enlightened
minds who know their identity with Brah-
man, and have given up their connection
with the objective world, live palpably
unified with Brahman, and with Eternal
Knowledge and Bliss.

1/4 VrVEKACHUDAMAN^'

^^mm ^n:=^r^ siit^^w mg w^^m

395. (First) destroy the hopes raised by
egoism in this filthy gross body, then do
the same forcibly with the air-like subtle
body; and realising Brahman, the em-
bodiment of eternal Bliss, whose glories-
the scriptures proclaim, as thy own Self „
live as Brahman.

[ Destroy &'c. — Both the gross and subtle bodies-
are the coverings over the Atman, the Existence-
Knowledge-BUss Absolute, and freedom consists iu'
going beyond thetn. ]

^^ &^^r g^> vr^RT i^ cr^r^ :^f^?:fqn^ee^|i

396. So long as man has any regard for
this corpse-like body, he is impure, and
suffers from enemies as well as from birth
death and disease; but when he thinks of
himself as pure, as the essence of the Good^
and immovable, he assuredly becomes free
from them; the Sruti also says this.

[ Suffers from enemies &c. — Compare Brihada-
ranyaka II. iv. 6 — " The Brahmanas oust him who>
sees them as diSerent from himself" &c., aiii^

VIVEKACHUDAMANr r;^^

Brihadaranyaka I. iv. 2 — ■'' So long as there is 4'
second, there is fear."

Srulis also ^c. — e, g. Ghhandogja VIII. xii. i —
'•This body is mortal, O Indra," &c. ]

•^ r^

v^97. By the elimination of all apparentf
existences superimposed on the Sonl, the
supreme Brahman — Infinite, the One
without a second, and beyond action —
remains as Itself.

[Jpparen/ exis/ences — Such as egoism etc.
As Itsdf — in Its own essence. ]

fi^S. When the mind-fuuctions are-
merged in the Supreme Atman, the Brah-
man, the x\bsolute— none of this pheiio-;
menal world is seen, whence it is reduced
to mere talk.

Merged- — through the Nirvikalpa Samadhi.

Phenomenal ivorld — created by name and form,
hence unreal.

Mere talk — on the lips of others, who are igno -
uanfe- Compare Chhandogya VI. i. 4,— '• AU'

176 VIVEKACflUDAMANI

Jinodificaiinns are mere cfforis of speecli," etc.]

f^ilVi^ir M^Tj^RK nf^ill [l^^j ^^: li^^.!.!

399. In the One Entity (Brahman) ».hc
concept ;oa oi the nuiveise Is a mere
phan.oii). W hence ca.ii there be diversity
iii that wu:cli is ^haii^riess, foi.nless, and
Ahsoiiler'

fsTT^-^iK i^rran: f5if5(i> VvT-^v ?:^i: iivjodi

400. In ihe Oue Entity devoid of the
sconce p's of Seer, Seeing and Seen,— .vhieh
is changeless, formless aiid ALsohite, —
wkence can there be dTverslty ?

[ 6Vt7' ^c — ot wliicii l44e piNeiiorntrtul worl<i
con&isi.s ]

^H^K Uin^k h%h^ r*TTf 5r<r. n^o?!

401. hi the One Entity perfectly hill
and motionless Jiikc the ocean after dis-
solution of the universe, — which is
changeless, formless, and Absolntc, —
whence can there be diversity?

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 177

402. Where the root of dehision is dis-
solved like darkness in light, — in the
Supreme Truth, the One without a second
and Absolute, — whence can there be
diversity?

{Root 0/ delusion — i. e. Ignorance.]

403. How can the talk of diversity apply
to the Supreme Truth which is one and
homogeneous? Who has ever noticed
diversity in the unmixed bliss of the state
of profound sleep?

404. Even before the realisation of the
highest Truth the universe does not exist
in the Absolute Brahman, the Essence of
Existence. In none of the three states of
time the snake is ever observed in the rope,
nor a drop of water in the mirage.

[ Three states 0/ time — past, present and future. ]

^ 1^^ ^%*. ^^cggHT^a^^f^ ll^o^ii

l/S vrVEKACHUDAMANE

405. The S nit is themselves declare that
this dualist ie universe is but a deliision;.
from the standpoint of absolute truths
This is also experienced in the state o£
dreamless sleep.

[ S?'u^is ^c — e. g. Katha Upa. IV. i*i, Brihad^a^
ranyaka, II. iv. 14., Mundaka, 11. ii. i-i, Chhan^
dogya, VI xiv., &c., &c. ]

406. That which is superimposed upon
something dse is observed; by the wise to

be identical with the substratum, as in
the case of the rope appearing as the
snake.. The apparent difference depends
solely on delusion.

[ Apparent difference — noticed by the igiiorant.

Depends delusion — i. e. lasts only so long as^

the delusion persists. ]

^'5q;^r f^^^qrs^T f^rrmr^ jt^^jt v

407,. ThiS' apparent universe has its-
root in the mind, and' never persists after
the mind is annihilated'. Therefore dis-
solve the mind by concentrating it in the
Supreme Selfj. which is thy inmost
Hssence.-

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 179

f^m^ ^cTct^t4 ^^r?^7^

r^ *- • r^ • r^. cn

408. The wise one realises in his heart,
through Samadhi, the Infinite Brahman
which is something of the nature of
eternal Knowledge and absolute Bliss,
which has no exemplar, which transcends
all limitations, is ever free and without
activity, — which is like the limitless sky,
indivisible and absolute.

[ Heart — stands for the Buddhi.

Something — which is inexpressible in terms of
speech or thought. ]

409. The wise one realises in his heart,
through Samadhi, the Infinite Brahman
which is devoid of the ideas of cause and
effect, which is the Reality beyond all
imaginations, homogeneous, matchless, be-
yond the range of proofs, established by
the pronouncements of the Vedas, and
ever familiar to us as the sense of the ego.

l80 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

[ Proofs — other than Revelation, viz., direct per-
ception and inference. Revelation also merely hints
at It.

Established &c. — We cannot deny the Self for
the Vedas speak of It.

Ever familiar ^'c. — Nobody can ever conceive
that he is not. For a discussion on the subject
refer to the Sariraka Bhashya on the Brahma-
Sutras I. i. 2.]

410. The wise one realises in his heart,
through Samadhi, the Infinite Brahman
which is undecaying and immortal, the
positive Entity which precludes all nega-
tions, which resembles the placid ocean
and is without a name, where there are
neither merits nor demerits, — which is
eternal, pacified and One.

[ Entity which precludes &c. — Being the Abso-
lute Reality there is no room in It for any kind of
Abh^va, such as Pragabhava (previous non-
existence, as of a jar before it was made), Pra-
dhwams^bh^va ( cessation by destruction, as when
the jar is broken to pieces) and the like. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI l8l

411. With the mind restrained in Sama-
dhi, behold in thy Self the Atman, of
infinite glory,— cut off thy bondage
strengthened by the impressions of pre-
vious births, and carefully attain the con-
summation of thy birth as a human being.'

[ Consummation &c.—\. e. Moksha, which is
only possible in a human birth. ]

412. Meditate on the Atman which re-
sides in thee, which is devoid of ^11
limiting adjuncts,— the Existence-Knowl-
edge-Bliss Absolute, the One without a
second, — and thou shalt no more come
under the round of birth and death.

[ Resides in thee—'^s thy own Being. ]

413. The sage never more attaches him-
self to this body— which is visible as an
appearance merely, like the shadow of a
man, owing to the experience of the effects

l82 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

of past deeds,— after it has once been cast
off to a distance like a corpse.

[ Visible as an appearance etc. — It would not be
perceived at all but for the effects of Prarabdha
work which are experienced through the body. As
it is, it is just an appearance.

The man of realisation never identifies himself
with the body, not even during his return to the
normal plane after Samadhi. ]

414. Realising the Atman, the eternal,
pure Knowledge and Bliss, throw far
away this limitation of a body which is
inert and filthy by nature. Then no more
remember it, for something that has been
vomited excites but disgust when called to
memory.

. rs

415. Burning all this, with its very root,'
in the fire of Brahman, the Eternal and

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 1^3

\lDSolnte Self, the truly ^ise man there-
aitei remains alone, as Atman, the eternal,
pure Knowledge and Bliss.

[ All M/s— the objective -universe— the not-Self.

Root—\. e. Nescience. ]

416. The knowei of Truth does no mere
care whether thi^ body, spun out by the
threads of Piarabdha work, falls or re-
mains—like the garland on a cow— fcr
his mind-functions are at^ rest in the
Erahman, the Essence of Bliss.

^Garland C0W—2.S, a cow is supremely im-

concerned about t^e garland put on her neck by
somebody, so the man of realisation has got
nothtng to do with the body. ]

f^m^^^ ^^ ^T \^\kt iwrfir ^x^f^^ «

417. Realising the Atman, the Infinite
.Bliss, as his very Self, with what object,
•or for whom, should the knower of Truth

cherish the body?

[ With what object &c.^kTt^^o^^c\:\on of the
^nse of Brihadaranyaka IV. iv. 12. He never

l84 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

thinks of himself as the Bhoktd, the enjoyer, or
]iva.

Cherish — like men of the world. ]

•v rv

418. The Yogin who has attained per-
fection and is free-in-life gets tkis as
result — he enjoys eternal Bliss in his mind,,
internally as well as externally.

419. The result of dispassion is Reali-
sation, that of Realisation is withdrawal
from sense-pleasures, which leads to the
experience of the Bliss of Self, whence
follows Peace.

420. If there is absence of the succeed-
ing stages, the preceding ones are meaning-
less. ( When the series is perfect ) the
cessation of the objective world, extreme
satisfaction, and matchless bliss follow as
a matter of course.

»v V

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 1 85

421. Being iinrtiflled by earthly troubles
is the result in question of Knowledge.
How can a man who did various loathsome
deeds during the state of delusion, commit
the same afterwards, having discrimina-
tion?

[ Earthly — lit. visible, i. e. those experienced in
this life, as opposed to the invisible ones, i. e. those
which are to be experienced hereafter. ]

*s r-

422. The result of Knowledge should be
the turning away from unreal things, and
attachment to these is the result of
ignorance. This is observed in the case
of one who knows a mirage and things
of that sort, and one who does not.
Otherwise, what other tangible result da
the knowers of Brahman obtain?

{^ One who knows does not — The man who

knows the mirage laughs at the illusion and passes
b)% but the ignorant man runs after it, mistaking-
it for water. To the sage the world appears no
doubt, but he knows it to be unreal and is not lured
by it. Not so the man of the world. ]

l86 VIVEKACHXTDAMANl

423. If the heart's knot — ignorance —
is totally destroyed, what natural cause
can there be for inducing such a man to
selfish action, for he is averse to sense-
pleasures ?

424. When sense-objects excite no more
desire, then is the culmination of dis-
passion. The extreme perfection of knowl-
edge is the absence of any impulsion of
the egoistic idea. And the limit of self-
withdrawal is reached when the mind-
functions that have been merged no pi ore
appear.

[Compare Fanchadasi, 'Chitradipa' Chapter,
-285-6 — ** The acme of dispassion is setting at
naught even the joys of the Brahmaloka, the
highest heaven ; Realisation is at its highest when
one identifies oneself with the Supreme Atman as
iirmly as the ordinary man identifies himself with
his body; and the perfection of self-withdrawal is
jeached when one forgets the dualistic universe as
£ompletelj as in dreamless sleep."

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 187

r^ »■ «> rv

425. Freed from any sense of reality of
external sense-objects, only seeming to
enjoy such sense-objects as are offered by
others like one sleepy, or like a child, be-
holding this world like one seen in
dreams, and having cognition of it at
chance moments — rare indeed, is such a
man, the enjoyer of the fruits of endless
merit, and he alone is blessed and es-
teemed on earth.

[ 0?ily see?7iing others &€. — When his atten-
dants or friends offer him food or some such
thing he takes it but half-consciously, his mind
being deeply absorbed in Brahman.

The enjoyer merit — i. e. a most fortunate

man. ]

426. That Sannyasin has got a steady
illumination who, having his soul wholly
merged in Brahman, enjoys eternal bliss,
is changeless and free from activity.

l88 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

[ The cliaracteristics of a man of realisation are
set forth in this and the next few Slokas. Com-
pare Gita II. 55-68. ]

427. That kind of mental function
which cognises only the identity of Brah-
man and Self, purified of all adjuncts, —
which is free from duality, and concerns
itself only with Pure Intelligence, is called
illumination. He who has this perfectly
steady is called the man of steady illumi-
nation.

[Purified adjuncts — eliminating the acci-
dental adjuncts and meditating on the common
substratum — Brahman, the Absolute. See note on
Sloka 241 andj"^^. ]

5qr^^ mm vr^csr^ ^^^R?€r r^^ct^: I

»^ rs

428. He whose illumination is steady,
who has constant bliss, who has almost
forgot the phenomenal universe, is accepted
as a man liberated in this very life.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 1 89

429. He who, even having his mind
merged in Brahman, is nevertheless quite
alert, but free at the same time from the
characteristics of the waking state, — and
whose Realisation is free from desires, is
accepted as a man liberated-in-life.

[ /$• aleri — i. e. never deviates from the ideal

life of a Jnani.

Characteristics waking state — that is, cog-
nising the objective world through the senses, and
being attached to it, like the ignorant man. ]

430. He whose cares about the pheno-
menal state have been appeased, who,
though possessed of a body consisting of
parts, is yet devoid of parts, and whose
mind is free from anxiety, is accepted as
a man liberated-in-life.

[ Cares state — i. e. how his bondage will

cease, and so on.

Devoid of parts — as Brahman. ]

431. The absence of the ideas of 'I and
mine' in this existing body which follows
as a shadow, is a characteristic of one
liberated-in-life.

190 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

[ ' / and mine ' — that * I ' am fair or ' I ' am
stout &c., or that this body is ' mine.'

Shadoiv — See Sloka 413.]

432. Not dwelling on the past, taking
no thought for the future and looking
with indifference upon the present, are
characteristics of one liberated-in-life.

433. Looking everywhere with an eye
of equality in this world full of elements
possessing merits and demerits, and dis-
tinct by nature from one another, — is a

characteristic of one liberated-in-life.

[ Looki?ig &€. — The world is so full of diversity,
yet the man of Realisation looks behind, and sees
the one Brahman in everything.

Nature — preponderance of one or other of the
three Gunas. ]

434. When things pleasant or painful
present themselves, to remain unruffled in
mind in both cases, through sameness of
attitude, is a characteristic of one liberated-
in-life.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 191

435. The absence of all ideas of interior
or exterior in the case of a Sannyasin,
owing to his mind being engrossed in
tasting the elixir of the Bliss of Brahman,
is a characteristic of one liberated-in-life.

[ Interior &c. — Since there is but One Exis*
tence — Brahman. ]

436. He who lives unconcerned, devoid
of all ideas of 'I and mine^ with regard to
the body and the organs etc., as well as to
his duties, is known as a man liberated-
in-life.

[ The Jnani is free from egoism or Abhimana,
though he may be intensely active. This state is
hinted at in this Sloka. ]

437. He who has realised his Brahman-
hood aided by the Scriptures, and is free
from the bondage of transmigration, is^
know^n as a man liberated-in-life.

[Aided (^c. — By discriminating the Truth in-
culcated by the Scriptures. ]

1^2 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

♦, »s rv •>-

438. He who has under no circum-
stances the idea of 'I' with regard to the
body and the organs etc., nor that of
'mine' in respect of things other than
these, is accepted as one liberated-in-life.

439. He who through his ilhimination
always knows the identity of the Jiva and
and Brahman, as well as of Brahman and
the universe, is known as a man liberated-
in-life.

440. He who feels just the same when
his body is either worshipped by the good
or tormented by the wicked, is known as
a man liberated-in-life.

^^ srf^ f^^^r: ^^iTcTT

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 193

441. The Sannyasin in whom sense-
objects directed by others are engulfed
like flowing rivers in the sea, and pro-
duce no change, owing to his identity
with the Existence Absolute, is indeed
liberated.

[ Directed by others — i. e. which others thrust
upon him. Whatever comes within his knowl-
edge but strengthens his identity with Brahman.

Compare Gita II. 70. ]

442. For one who has realised the Truth
of Brahman there is no more transmigra-
tion as before: If there is, that man has
not realised his identity with Brahman,
but is one whose senses are outgoing in
their tendency.

[ Is 0716 whose senses ■&'c. — is an ordinary sense-
bound man. ]

443. If it be urged that he is still sub-
ject to transmigration through the mo-
mentum of his old desires, the reply is —
no, for desires get weakened through the
realisation of one's identity with Brahman.

194 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

444. The propensities of even a con-
j5rmed libertine are checked in the pre-
sence of his mother; just so, when
Brahman, the Bliss Absolute, has been
realised, the man of realisation has na..
longer any worldly tendency.

445. One who is constantly practising
meditation is observed to have external
perceptions. The Srutis mention Pra-
rabdha work in the case of such a man,,
and we can infer this from results actual-
ly seen.

[ External perceptions — such as satisfying the
physical needs or teaching enquirers etc.

Srutis &c, — The reference is to Chhandogya
Up. VI. xiv. 2, " The delay in his ( i. e. a Jnanin's )
case is only so long as hrs body lasts^ after which
he becomes one with Brahman."

Prdrabdha work — is the work done ia past lives
which has engendered the present body (referred
to in Sloka 451). The other two kinds of work are
the * Sanchita ^ or accumulated ( mentioned \u
Sloka 447) and the 'A'gami' or forthcoming (m.ei>-
ioned in Sloka 449 )►

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI I95

Results &*€. — the continuance of the body after
realisation, and its experiences during; that period
can only be explained by assuming that the
Prirabdha continues to work. This is further ex-
plained in the next Sloka. ]

WT^:^: fe^ii;^'? RT^^^r ^nk i^^nrci: ii

446. Prarabdha work is acknowledged to
persist so long as there is the perception
of happiness and the like. Every result
is preceded by an action, and nowhere is
it seen to accrue independently of action.

A-4-7 . Through the realisation that I am
the Brahman, all the accumulated actions
of a hundred crore of cycles come to
nought, like the actions of the dream-
state on awakening.

448. Can the good actions or dreadful
sins that one fancies to do in the dream-
state, lead him to heaven or hell after he
has awakened from sleep?

rr--

r<v

196 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

449. Realising the Atman which is un-
attached and indifferent like the sky, the
aspirant is never touched in the least by
actions yet to be done.

»v •v

450. The sky is not affected by the
smell of liquor merely through its connec-
tion with the jar; similarly the Atman is
not, through Its connection with the
limiting adjuncts, affected by the proper-
ties thereof.

[ The Atman, like the sky, is always unattached,
though the ignorant man superimposes connection
with external things on It. ]

««^r^r ^^^^ ^^'Tgf^5:5?Ttr55€^rw^^ii^H?

451. The work which has fashioned this
body prior to the dawning of Knowledge,
is not destroyed by that Knowledge with-
out yielding its fruits, like the arrow shot
at an object.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI I97

452. The arrow which Is shot at an
object with the idea that it is a tiger,
does not, when that object is perceived to
be a cow, check itself, but pierces the
object with full force.

*v •«.

453. The Prarabdha work is certainly
too strong for the man of realisation, and
is spent only by the actual experience of
its fruit; w^hile the actions previously
accumulated and those yet to come are
destroyed by the fire of perfect Knowledge.
But none of the three at all affects those
who realising their identity with Brah-
man are always living absorbed in that
idea. They are verily the transcendent
Brahman.

[ 27te Prdrahdha Knowledge — The argument

in the Srutis in support of Prarabdha being bind-
ing on even the Jnani(as set forth in the first
half of this Sloka as well as in Slokas. 445 and
451-2) is only a re-statement ( anuvada ) of the
popular view. Strictly speaking, the Jnani him-
self is not even aware of its existence. The real
truth about it is given in the last half of this Sloka

198 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

and in Sloka 463, and reasons for this view are
set forth in Sloka 454 et seq. We may add in
passing that we have here the boldest pronounce-
ment of the exahed status of a man of realisation,
who is affected by nothing whatsoever in creation.]

454. For the sage who lives in his own
Self as the Brahman devoid of the identi-
fication with the limiting adjuncts — the
One without a second, the question of the
existence of Prarabdha work is meaning-
less, like the question of a man who has
awakened from sleep having any connec-
tion with the objects seen in the dream-
state.

*. rv

fifing ^^^ f^^RT ^m^ ii^^^li

455. The man who has awakened from
sleep never has any idea of ^I' or 'mine*
with regard to his dream-body and the
dream-objects that ministered to that body,
but lives quite awake, as his own Self*

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 199

^ rT^^ m^^r5H44V4H'd«T

rT^rrjf f^^iT ^f^'TT^

456. He has no desire to substantiate
the unreal objects, nor is seen to maintain
that dream-world. If he still clings to
those nnrcal objects, he is emphatically
declared to be not yet free from sleep.

wsirMK ^mm ^irnr:

457. Similarly he who is absorbed in
Brahman lives identified with the eternal
Atman, and beholds nothing else. As
one has a memory of the objects seen in a
dream, so the man of realisation has a
memory of the everyday actions such as
eating and so forth.

458. The body has been fashioned by
Karma, so one may imagine the Pra-
labdha with reference to it. But it is not

20a VIVEKACHUDAMANr

reasonable to attribute the same to Atmaui
for the Atman is never the outcome of
work.

459. The Srutis, whose words are in-
fallible, declare the Atman to be ^'birth-
less, eternal and undecaying.'^ So, to the
man who lives identified with That, how
can the Prarabdha be attributed? ,

["Birthless" etc. — The reference is to Katha

Up. I. ii. i8.— ^# R^: j^pg^rs^ ^r% ^ w^m

^^^in ^KR — " The Atman is birthless, eternal,
undecaying, and ever new ( ancient ), and is not
destroyed when the body is destroyed."]

460. The Prarabdha can be maintained
only so long as one lives identified with
the body. But no one admits that the
man of realisation ever identifies himself
with the body. Hence the Prarabdha
should be rejected in his case.

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 20I

461. The attributing of Prarabdha to
the body even is certainly a delusion.
How can something that is superimposed
(on another) have any existence, and how
can that which is unreal have a birth?
And how can that which has not been
born at all, die ? So how can the Pra-
rabdha exist for something that is unreal?

[ The body being an effect of Maya is unreal,
and it is absurd to speak of Prarabdha as affecting
this unreal body. ]

msr^^ ^^ k^ i:rt ^^^^"r ^^r^ n ^^^n
^?Trarg; ^mr^^^^ir t^jtp-^ ^3[% ^rt*. i

462-3. " If the effects of ignorance are
destroyed with their root by Knowledge,
then how does the body live?" — it is to
convince those fools who entertain a
doubt like this, that the Srutis from a re-
lative standpoint hypothesise the Pra-
rabdha, but not for proving the reality of.
the bodv etc. of the man of realisation.

464. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, infinite, without begin-

302 V'lVEKACHUDAMANI

laing -or end, transcendent, and change-
less; there is no duality whatsoever in It.

465. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, the Essence of Exis-
tence, Knowledge and Eternal Bliss, and
devoid of activity; there is no duality
whatsoever in It.

2T^n^^^ Tj^g^TT^^cT ^rfrg^??: I

466. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, which is inside all,
liomogeneous, infinite, endless, and all-
pervading; there is no duality whatsoever
in It.

[ /-homogeneous — admiuing of no variation. ]

467. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, which is neither to be
shimn^d nor to be taken up or accepted,
and is without any support; there is no

"duality whatsoever in It.

[ Shunned etc. — because It is the Self of all.
Without any support — Self-existent, being Itself

the supporx of everything else. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 203

468. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, beyond attributes, with-
out parts, subtle, absolute, and taintless;
there is no duality whatsoever in It.

469. There is only Brahman, the Une
without a second, whose real nature is in-
comprehensible, and which is beyond the
range of mind and speech ; there is no
duality whatsoever in It.

470. There is only Brahman, the One
without a second, the Reality, effulgent,
self -existent, pure, intelligent, and unlike
anything finite ; there is no duality what-
soever in It.

[ Intelligent — strictly speaking, Intelligence
Absolute.

Unlike ^c. — It has got no exemplar.

The repetition is for emphasising the Absolute,
Unconditioned aspect of Brahman. ]

204 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

471. High-souled Sannyasins who have
got rid of all attachment, and discarded
ail sense-enjoyments, who are purified and
perfectly restrained, realise this Supreme
Truth and at the end attain the Supreme
Bliss through their Self-realisation.

[ Safifi}'asins — lit. those who struggle after
Realisation.

Pacified — refers to control of the mind. Res-
trained— to control of the senses.

End &c, — They attain Videhamukti or dis-
embodied, absolute Freedom after the fall of their
body. ]

472. Thou, too, discriminate this Su-
preme Truth, the real nature of the Self,
which is. Bliss undiluted, and shaking off
thy delusion created by thy own mind, be
free, and illumined, and attain the con-
summation of thy life. '

[ Thou, too, &c. — The Guru is addressing the*
disciple.

Undiluted — unmixed, i. e. absolute.

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 205

Illuviined — lit. awakened, i. e. from this unreal
dream of duality. ]

473. Through Samadhi in which the
mind has been perfectly stilled, visualise
the Truth of the Self with the eye of clear
Realisation. If the meaning of the
(scriptural) words heard from the Guru
is perfectly and indubitably discerned,
then it can lead to no more doubt.

[ Samadhi— \. e. the highest or Nirvikalpa
Samadhi.

Scriptural words — such as "Thou art That,"
and so on.

Discerned — realised in Samadhi. ]

474. In the realisation of the Atman,
the Bxistence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute,
through the breaking of one's connection
with the bondage of Avidya or Ignorance,
scriptures, reasoning, and the words of

206 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

the Giini are the tests, while one^s own
experience earned by concentrating the
mind is another proof.

[ Texts : The word ' Pramana ' can be translated
also as 'proofs ' or 'authority.'

Scriptures — which tell of one's eternal identity
with Brahman, and declare all duality to be unreal.

Reaso?iing — upon those scriptural statements so
as to be convinced of their truth. For instance,
one can argue that bondage being a creation of
one's mind must be unreal and that Knowledge
of Brahman dispels it, and so on.

Words Guru: The Guru is a man of Reali-
sation and perfectly unselfish and all-loving. He
is therefore an Apta, and as such his words are
authority.

One's own experience &'c. : This is the ultimate
test. For otherwise one is not perfectly satisfied.

Concefitrating &'c. — in Samadhi. ]

475. Bondage, liberation, satisfaction,
anxiety, recovery from illness, hunger and
such other things arc known only to the
man concerned, and knowledge of these
to others is a mere inference.

[ hiference: Others merely guess at them through
signs. ]

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 207

476. The Gtinis, as well as the Srntis,
instruct the disciple, standing: aloof; while
the man of realisation crosses (Avidya)'
thronoh Illumination alone, backed by the
grace of God.

[The Gurus &c. — This instructron is parohha
or indirect, while the aspirant's own experience in
Samadhi is aparoksha or direct. The former is
the means to the latter. ]

Ml , Himself knowing his own indivi-
sible Self through his own realisation,
and thus becoming perfect, a man should
stand face to face with the Atman, with
his mind free from dualistic ideas.
[Face to fact — i. e. must live in Atman. ]

a^ #T^: ^^qr 5T^ir I

rv«N

478. The verdict of all discussions on
Vedanta is that the Jiva and the whole uni-
verse are nothing but Brahman, and that
liberation means abiding in Brahman, the
indivisible Entity. While the Srutis them-
selves are authority (for the statement)

20Z VIVEKACHUDAMANI

that Brahman is One without a second.

[ Abiding iti Brahman — as opposed to daalistic
ideas.

The teacher's address begun in Sloka 213 ends
here. ]

479. Realising the Supreme Truth at
a blessed moment, through the above in-
structions of the Guru, the authority of
the scriptures and his own reasoning,
with his senses pacified and the mind
concentrated, (the disciple) became im-
movable in form and perfectly established
in the Atman.

480. Concentrating the mind for some
time in the Supreme Brahman he rose,
and out of supreme bliss spoke as follows :

[ Rose — came down to the ordinary sense-plane.]

VIYEKACIIUDAMANI 209

481. My mind has vanished, and all
its activities have melted, by realising the
identitv of the Brahman and the self; I
do not know either this or not- this; nor
what or how much the boundless Bliss
(of Samadhi) is!

[ This or not-this—2\\ relative ideas, that is.
\Vhat or hoiv much &c. — The Bliss experienced
in Samadhi is inexpressible and immeasurable. ] /

482. The majesty of the ocean of Su-
preme Brahman, replete with the current
of the nectar-like Bliss of the Self, is
verily impossible to express in speech, nor
can it be conceived by the mind, — in an
infinitesimal fraction of which mv mind
melted like a hailstone getting merged in
the ocean, and is now satisfied by that
Essence of Bliss.

[ Infinitesivial fr action : Lit. a particle of whose
part's part. The Avyaktam or Unmanifest is a
part of Brahman (through Upadhi or superimposed
limitations ); the Sutratman or the Cosmic Mind
is, again, part of that; while the Virat or the
Being who considers himself as the Cosmic

N

^^

210. VTVEKACHUBAMAM^I

JBody,. is a fraction of this last. The- bliss of thi>
Virat e^'en is enough to melt the finite mind:
Compare Sri Ramakrishna's story of a ship- that
came near a magnetie Fock and had all its bolts'
drawn out, so that it was rediKed to its priatine-
condition.

Haihtone &-c. : The hailstones that accompany
a shower of rain on the ocean quickly melt and'
become one with it.

Now- — after return to the normal plane of con-
sciousness. ]

f^ ^ %5r ^ •fr# ^% ^T^ff&t ^'Tcf \

483'.. Where is the universe gone^ by
v/hont removed, and whers^ is' it mei^ed?
It was xust now seen by me, and has it
ceased to exist? — It is parsing* strange!

*v •

TWf f^ T^g^^ T^^^ir^ r^r^^ipc ^

484. In the ocean ©f Brahman filled with
the nectar of Absolute BIi&&,. what is to>
be shtmaaed and what ajccepted, what is^
other (than^ oneself )< and what different?

[ What shunned &^c. — There is nothing besides-
the One Atman^ and the aspirant is identified with
That. ]

K

^Smi^^ H^t^?S[i:qi3|TTW K^tt^ii: \w^%

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 211

485. I do not see, or hear, or know
anything in this. I exist as the Self,
the Eternal Bliss — distinct from every-
thing else.

[ See &'c. — All finite ideas have ceased.
In ihis — state of Realisation.

Distinct from everything else — being the Subject,
whereas all else are objects. ]

486. Repeated salutations to thee, O
noble-minded Teacher, who art devoid of
attachment, the best among the good
souls, the embodiment of the essence of
Eternal Bliss — the One without a second, —
who art infinite, and ever the boundle.ss
ocean of mercy; —

487. Whose glance, like the showier of
concentrated moonbeams, has removed
my exhaustion brought on by the aflaiction.'^

212 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

of the world, and in a moment admitted
me to the nndecaying status of the Atman,
the BHss of infinite majesty!

[Afflictions world — those arising from the

body, from other creatures and from physical
phenomena. ]

^?^rs^ ^^^^Tst f^gT?7tst ^^^^Fci; i

488. Blessed am I, I have attained the
consummation of my life, and am free
from the clutches of transmigration, — I
am the Essence of Eternal Bliss, I am
infinite, — all through thy mercy!

489. I am unattached, I am disembodied,
I am free from the subtle body, and nn-
decaying. I am pacified, I am infinite, I
am taintless, and eternal.

[^Disembodied subtle body. I have realised

my identity with the Atman, and no longer con-
sider myself as a body or mind. ]

490. I am not the doer, I am nor the
enjoyer, I am changeless, and beyoud_

^

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 213

activity; I am the Essence of Pure Knowl-
edge, I am Absolute, and indentified with
Eternal Good.

[ Not the doer &c, — It is the man under delusion
\vho thinks himself as these. But I am Illumined.]

491. I am indeed different from the seer,
listener, speaker, and enjoyer; I am the
Atnian — eternal, without any break, be-
yond activity, limitless, unattached, and
infinite Knowledge.

I" Different from the seer &c.~\ never identify
myself with any activity ©f the organs or the mind,
for I am no longer finite. ]

492. I am neither this nor that, but the
Illuminer of both; I am indeed Brahman,
the One without a second, pure, devoid of
interior or exterior, and infinite.

[ Neither this nor //^a/— things that come under
direct or indirect perception. It is the body \Yhich
makes ideas of nearness or remoteness etc.
possible. ]

214 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

493. I am indeed Brahman, the One
without a second, matchless, the Reality
that has no beginning, beyond such imagi-
nations as thou or I, or this or that, the
Essence of Eternal Bliss, the Truth.

494. I am Narayana, the slayer of
Naraka, I am the destroyer of Tripura,
the Witness of everything; I have no
other Ruler but myself, I am devoid of
the ideas of 'I' and 'mine.'

[ Naraka — a demon, son of Earth, killed by
Vishnu.

Tripura — the demon of the " three cities,'*

destroyed by Shiva. ]

**

495. I alone reside in all beings as
Knowledge, being their internal and ex-
ternal support. I myself am the enjoyer
and all that is enjoyable, — whatever I

VIVEKACHUDAMANl 215

looked upon as ' this' or the not-Self

previously.

[ Support — being the substratum of all super-
impositJone.

Previously — before Realisatioti. ]

496. In me, the ocean of Infinite Bliss,
the waves of the universe are created and
destroyed by the playing of the wind of
Maya.

497. Such ideas as gross and so forth
are erroneously imagined in me by people
through the manifestation of things
superimposed, — just as in the indivisible
and absolute time cycles, years, half-years
and seasons etc. are imagined.

[Cj'cles — The pericxi of duration of the Universe.]

«v /^

rsf

%

m6 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

49S. That which is superimposed by th.e
grossly ignorant fools can never taint the
substratnra : The great rush of waters ob-
served in a mirage never wets the desert
tracts.

<^ r^

499. I am beyond contamination like
the sky; I am distinct from things ilhi-
mined like the sun; I am always motion-
less like the mountain; I am limitless like
the ocean.

"•^ "s •s • "N »^ •v

500. I have no connection, with the
body, as the sky with the clouds; so how
can states of wakefulness^ dream and pro-
found sleep, which are attributes of the.
body, affect me?

^ a:^ ^mn?T rnxxm g^ \ '
^ n:^ ^T^rC ra^ ^2rrt

VIVEKACHUDAMANF 217

501. It is the Upadhi (superimposed at-
tribute) that comes, and it is that alone
which goes; that again performs actions
and enjoys ( their fruits ) , that alone
decays and dies, whereas I ever remain
firm like the Kula mountain.

[ A'ula moufi/diu— mQiMion^d \n the Puranas as
being svonderfully stable. ]

502. There is neither engaging in work
nor cessation from it for me who am al-
ways :he same and devoid of parts. How
can that which is One, concentrated,
without break, and infinite Hke the sky^
ever exert?

[ Cvncenlrated — like a lump of sak which con-
sists of nothing but salt.]

503. How can there be merits and;
demerits for me who am without orgaus^y

2t8 VrV^EKACHUDAMANI

withoiit mind, changeless, and formless, —
who am the Realisation of Bliss Absolute?
The Sruti also mentions this in the pas-
sage, " Not touched &c."

[ Sru^i &c. — Brihadaranyaka Upa., IV. iii. 22 —
{In the state of profound sleep a man becomes)
■"■ Untouched by merits and untouched by demerits,
for he is then beyond all the afflictions of the
heart." It may be added here that the experience
of the Sushupta state is cited in the Sruti merely
as an illustration of the liberated state, which is
the real state of the Atman, beyond all misery.
Vide Sankara's commentary on the chapter. ]

504. If heat or cold, good or evil hap-
pens to touch the shadow of a man's body,
it affects not in the least the man him-
self, who is distinct from the shadow.

^ ^rf^nf Hr^^wr: ^^?s[rf?cr f^^^iirq:

505. The properties of things manifested
do not affect the Witness which is distinct
from them, changeless, and indifferent, —
as the properties of a room (do not affect)
the lamp (that illumines it) .

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 219

•s t ^ ^ ^ ^^

506. As the sun is a witness with re-
gard to men's actions, and fire burns
everything without distinction, and as the
rope is related to a thing superimposed
on it, — so am I, the unchangeable, intel-
ligent Self.

[Sun actions — people do good and bad

deeds with the help ot sunlight, but the sun is un-
affected by their results.

Rope etc. — the relation of the rope to the
snake is wholly fictitious.

So am I etc. — unconcerned with the activities of
the Buddhi. ]

507. I am neither the doer nor do I
make others do any action; I am neither
the enjoyer nor do I make others enjoy;
I neither see nor do I make others see; —
I am that Self -effulgent, Transcendent
Atman.

[ I am neither &c. — I am free from all activity,
direct or indirect.

Transcendent — beyond the range of sense. ]

220 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

sRcTTOT wg^rfer Wcfrsfer kr^ iiv^o^t;

508. When the supervening adjunct
(Upadhi) is moving, the movement of the
reflection which is due to the Upadhi is
ascribed by fools to the object reflected,
such as the snn, which is free from activity,
— (and they think) "I am the doer," "I
am the enjoyer," "I am killed, oh alas!"

[ Supervening adjunct — e. g. water, in which the
sun is reflected. It is the water that moves and
with it the reflection, but never the sun, though
ignorant people may think the sun is also moving.
Similarly, all activity which belongs to the Buddhi
under the reflection of the Atman, is erroneously
attributed to the latter.

'- 1 am the doer,'' &c. — This is how the igno-
rant man thinks and wails. ]

509. Let this inert body drop down in
water or on land, I am not touched by its
properties, like the sky by the properties
of the jar.

[ Not touched Jar — Just as the sky seemingly

enclosed in a jar is one with the infinite sky, and

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 221

IS always the same whether the jar is broken or
not, similarly is the Atman always the same despite
Its apparent relation to the body. ]

c

510. The passing states of the Buddhi
such as agentship, enjoyment, cunning,
drunkenness, dullness, bondage, freedom
and so on, are never, in reality, in the Self,
the Supreme Brahman, the Absolute, the
One without a second.

[ The Atman is Knowledge Absolute, which
admits of no change, while the Buddhi or determi-
native faculty, being inert, is subject to change.
So the confusion of the characteristics of the Self
\vith those of Buddhi is solely due to super-
imposition. ]

511. Let there be changes in Prakriti in
ten, hundred, or a thousand ways, what
have I — the unattached Knowledge Abso-
lute— got to do with them? — Never do the
clouds touch the sky !

[Prakri/i — the Undifferentiated, described in
Slokas io8 and following. ]

222 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

512. I am verily that Brahman, the One
without a second, which is like the sky,
subtle, without beginning or end, in which
the whole universe from the Undifferentia-
ted down to the gross body, appears merely
as a shadow.

[Appears shadow — to the ignorant, j

513. I am verily that Brahman, the
One without a second, which is the sup-
port of all, which illumines all things,
which has infinite forms, is omnipresent,
devoid of multiplicity, eternal, pure, un-
moved, and absolute.

[ Support of all — being the one substratum of
all phenomena, j

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 223

514. I am verily that Brahman^ the One
without a second, which transcends the
endless differentiations of Maya, is the in-
most essence of all^ beyond the range of
consciousness, — which is Truth, Knowl'
edge^ Infinitude, and Bliss Absolute.

[ Maya — Same as Prakriti or Avyakta.

Trtith — may be translated as Existence. Thi»
line sets forth the Szuarnpa Lakshana or essentia!
characteristics of Brahman, as distinct from It*
Tatastha Lakshana or indirect attributes, such a*
creatorship of the universe and so on. ]

515. I am withoait activity, changeless^
without parts, formless, absolute, eternal,,
wdthout any other support, the One with-
out a second.

[ Without support: Brahman is Itself Its-
own support. ]

224 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

516. I am the Universal, I am the All,
I am transcendent, the -One without a
second. I am Absolute and Infinite Knowl-
edge, I am Bliss, and indivisible.

{^Indivisible — without break. ]

517. This splendour of the sovereignty
of Self-effulgence I have received by virtue
of the supreme majesty of thy grace. Salu-
tation to thee, O glorious, noble-minded
Teacher, — salutations again and again!

[ Sel/-effulgenc€ — hence, absolute independence.
The disciple is beside himself with joy, and hence
the highly rhetorical language. ]

518. O Teacher, thou hast out of sheer
grace awakened me from sleep and com-
pletely saved me, who was wandering, in
an interminable dream, in a forest of
birth, decay and death created by illusion,

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 225

being tormented day after day by count-
less afflictions, and sorely troubled by the
tiger of Egoism.

[ Sleep — of Nescience, which also creates the
* dream,' two lines further on.

Forest — i. e. diHicult to come through.

Day after day : It is a well-known fact that
even a short dream may, to the dreamer's mmd,
appear as extending over years. ]

519. Salutation to thee, O Prince of
Teachers, thou unnamable Greatness,
that art ever the same, and dost manifest
thyself as this universe, — thee I salute!

[ Greatness &c. — The Guru is addressed as
Brahman Itself by the grateful disciple. Hence
the use of epithets applicable to Brahman. Com-
pare the salutation IMantram of the Guru-Gita :
" The Guru is Brahma, the Guru is Vishnu, the
Guru is Shiva, the God of Gods. The Guru verilv
is the Supreme Brahman. Salutations to that ado-
rable Guru!"]

226 VIVEKACHUDAMANT

520. Seeing- the worthy disciple who had
attained the Bliss of the Self, realised the
Truth, and was glad at heart, thus pros-
trating himself, that noble, ideal Teacher
again addressed the following excellent
words:

521. The nniverse is an unbroken
series of perceptions of Brahman,, hence
it is in- all respects nothing but Brahman,
See this- with the eye of illr&mination and
a serene mind, under all circumstances.
Is one who- has eyes ever found to see
all around anything else but forms?
Similarly, what is there except Brahman
to engage the intellect of a man of reali-
sation?

[ Sei'ies ......Brahman- — Existence^. KncHvIedge,

and Bliss which are the Essence of Brahman can
be found, upon analysis, as underlying, every per-
ception of ours. By another way of reasoning,,
the world is simply Brahman seen through a veil
of name and form, which are contFibuted by th«
mind. It is X +miQdy as Swami Vivekananda has
put it.

VIVEKACHUDAMAM 22/

One who has eyes — -suggests a discriminaling
man whose view of life will be difTerent from that
of the ordinary man. Hence he can generalise
the objective world as so m^ny/orms. ' Form '
implies 'colour,' which also is a meaning of the
word ' Rupa.' ]

522. What wise man would discard that
enjoyment of Supreme Bliss and revel in
things unsubstantial? When the exceed- ^
ingly charming moon is shining, who i
would wish to look at a painted moon?

^h: g^ mg ^^rcm%^r \Wi\\\

523, From the perception of unreal
things there is neither satisfaction nor a
cessation of misery. Therefore, being
satisfied with the realisation of the Bliss
Absolute, the One without a second, live
happily in a state of identity with the
Real Brahman.

228 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

- [ Neither satisfaction &c. — Compare the cele-
brated verse — " Never is desire appeased by the
enjoyment of sense-pleasures," &c. ]

524. Beholding the Self alone in all
circumstances, thinking of the Self, the One
without a second, and enjoying the Bliss
of the Self, pass thy time, O noble soul!

525. Dualistic conceptions in the Atman,
the Infinite Knowledge, the Absolute, are
like imagining castles in the air. There-
fore, always identifying thyself with the
Bliss Absolute, the One without a second,
and thereby attaining Supreme Peace, re-
main quiet.

[ Quiet — as the Witness. How he is to live, is
explained in the next verse. ]

ai^T^iT^r 3^%5fr ^^R^jfr

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 229

526. The restful state of the mind —
which is the root of unreal imaii^inings —
of the noble knower of Brahman, in a
state of identity with Brahman, is Su-
preme Quietude, in which there is con-
stant enjoyment of the Bliss Absolute, —
the One without a second.

527 . To the man who has realised his
own nature, and drinks the undiluted
Bliss of the Self, there is nothing more
exhilarating than the quietude that comes
of a state of desirelessness.

528. The illumined sage whose only
pleasure is in the Self, ever lives at ease,
whether going or staying, sitting or lying,
or in any other condition.

[ He is perfectly independent. ]

529. The noble soul Avho has perfectly

230 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

realised the Truth and whose mind-
functions meet with no obstruction, does
no more depend upon conditions of place,
time, posture, direction, moral disciplines,
objects of meditation and so forth. What
regulative conditions can there be in
knowing one's own self?

[ Place — holy places are meant. Similarly with
time.

Posture: Which is an important thing with
beginners. ' Asana ' may also mean ' seats.'

Direction — facing north or east.

Moral disciplines — The Yama and Niyama ob-
servances mentioned in Ashtanga Yoga.

Objects 0/ meditation — gross or fine. ]

530. To know that this is a jar, what

condition, forsooth, is necessary except

that the means of knowledge be free from

defect, which alone ensures a cognition of

the object ?

[ Means 0/ knowledge — e. g. the eye in the case
of vision,- and so on, ]

531. So this Atman, which is an eternal
verity, manifests Itself as soon as the

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 2^1

means of right knowledge are present, and
does not depend upon either place, or time,
or (internal) purity.

[Means hwwledge — Realisation, to which

direct perception, inference etc. are subordinate
aids. ]

rv •v

532. The consciousness that I am Deva-
datta is independent of circumstances;
similar is the case with the realisation of
this knower of Brahman that he is Brah-
man.

533. What indeed can manifest That

whose lustre, like the sun, causes the

whole universe — unsubstantial, unreal, in-

■significant — to appear at all ?

[An echo of the famous Sruti passage — " He
shining, everything else shines, through His light
all this is manifest."]

534. What, forsooth, can illumine that
Eternal Subject by which the Vedas and

232 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

Poranas and other scriptures, as well as
all beings are endowed with a meaning ? .

[ An echo of Brihadaranyaka II. iv. 14.

Other scriptures — may mean the Six Systems of
Philosophy or anything else. ]

535. Here is the Self-effulgent Atman,
of infinite power, beyond the range of
conditioned knowledge, 3-et the common
experience of all, — realising which alone
this incomparable Knower of Brahman
lives his glorious life, freed from bondage.
[ Incomparable — lit. best among the best, j

»v

536. Satisfied with undiluted, constant
Bliss, he is neither grieved, nor elated by
sense-objects, is neither attached nor
averse to them, biit always disports with
the Self and takes pleasure therein.
[ Undiluted &'c. — i. e. Absolute Bliss.

Neither attached &c — Compare Gita XIV. 22-25.]

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 233

537. A child plays with his toys for-
getting hunger and bodily pains; exactly
so the man of realisation takes pleasure in
the Reality, without ideas of ' I' or 'mine,'
and is happy.

538. Men of realisation have their food
without anxiety or humiliation, by beg-
ging, and their drink from the water of
rivers; they live freely and independently,
and sleep without fear in cremation
grounds or forests; their clothing may be
the quarters themselves, which need no
washing and drying, or any bark, etc. ; the
earth is their bed; they roam in the ave-
nue of Vedanta; while their pastime is
in the Supreme Brahman.

" This is a splendid setting forth of the free life
ot a true Sannyasin.

234 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

Without fear — because of their identification
with Brahman, the One without a second.

Quarters &€. — He goes nude, that is.

Any bark etc. — this is suggested by the word m
in the text.

Bark, or cloth, or anything may be their dress. ]

539. The knower of Atrnan, who wears
no outward mark and is unattached to
external things, rests on this body with-
out identification, and experiences all
sorts of sense-objects as they come,
through others' wish, like a child.

[ No outward mark\ Hence it is so difficult to
know them.

^ense-objects — food etc.

As they come — in the working out of Pr^rabdha
work.

Through others'' wish — as asked by his devotees
or friends. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 235

540. Established in the ethereal plane
of Knowledge Absolute, he wanders in the
world, sometimes like a mad man, some-
times like a child and at other times like
a ghoul, having no other clothes on his
person except the quarters, or sometimes
wearing clothes, or perhaps skins at other
times.

[ Ghoul — with no sense of cleanliness. It should
be noted that these are some of the devices to
avoid the company of vulgar people.

Skins — the word in the text also means • bark." ]

^^riT^^ -^w g^: \^^ -^^ww mcT: \\^\

541. The sage, living alone, enjoys
sense-objects, being the very embodiment
of desirelessness, — always satisfied with
his own Self, and himself present as the
All.

[ As the All — knowing his identity with the whole
universe, as Atman. ]

542. Sometimes a fool, sometimes a
sage, sometimes possessed of regal splen-

236 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

dour; sometimes wandering, sometimes
behaving like a motionless python, some-
times wearing a benignant expression;
sometimes honoured, sometimes insulted,
sometimes imknown; — thus lives the man
of realisation, ever happy with Supreme
Bliss.

[ These are some of the impressions which the
phases of a saint's life produce upon the outside
world. People judge him diversely, but he is
supremely indifferent to what others think of or do
towards him.

Pytho7i — which seldom moves but waits for the
food to come to it. ]

543. Though without riches, yet ever
content; though helpless, yet very power-
ful; though not enjoying sense-objects,
yet eternally satisfied; though without an
exemplar, yet looking upon all with an
eye of equality.

\_ Powerful: The Atman is his wealth, power,
and everything. ]

544. Though doing, yet inactive ; though

VIVEKACIIUDAMAM 037

experiencing fruits of pasL actions, yet
imtoiiched by them; though possessed of
a body, yet without identification witli it;
though limited, yet omnipresent is lie.

545. Neither pleasure nor pain, nor
good nor evil, ever touches this Knower
of Brahman who always lives without the
body-idea.

[ A reproduction of the sense of Chhandogya
Vlil. xii. I. ]

•^ ^rs

546. Pleasure or pain, as well as good
or evil, affects only him who has connec-
tions with the gross body etc., and identi-
fies himself with these. How can sfood
or evil, or the effects thereof, touch the
sage who has identified himself with the
Reality and thereby shattered his bondage?

238 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

547. The sun which appears to be^
but is not actually, swallowed by Rahu is-
called as swallowed up by people, through
delusion, not knowing the real nature of
the sun.

[ The reference is to the solar eclipse.
Nature sun — which is a mass of light. ]

•^ fv

548. Similarly, ignorant people look
upon the perfect knower of Brahman, who
is wholly rid of bondages of the body etc,
as possessed of the body, seeing but an
appearance of it.

549. In reality, however, he rests dis-
carding the body, like the snake its slough ;
and the body is moved hither and thither
by the wind of Prana, just as it listeth.

[ Discarding the body — ceasing to identify him-
self with the body.

Like the snake etc. — A reminiscence of Brihada-
ranyaka IV. iv. 7.

Wind — *Vayu/ which strictly speaking means

Horce.' in which sense Pranas can be called 'Vayu/

There is another reading to the first line, ^iflH^^-

VIVEKACIIUDAMANI 239»

'SrN'R f^^5T?frf ROTrT — which should be rendered
thus " But the body of the liberated man remivinj
like the slough of a snake. J

550. As a piece of wood is drifted on to
a high or low ground by the current, so
is his body carried on by the momentum
of past actions to the enjoyment of their
fruits as they present themselves in due
course.

[ Efijoyment — includes ' suffering ' also. ]

551. The man of realisation, bereft of
the body-idea, moves amid sense-enjoy-
ments like a man subject to transmigra-
tion, through desires engendered by Pra-
rabdha work. He himself, however, lives
unmoved, in the body, like a witness, free
from mental oscillations, like the pivot of
the potter's wheel.

[Like transmigration — only apparently. The

Prarabdha has no meaning for the Jnani who i»
identified with the Self. See Slokas 453-465.

240 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

Pivot — which is fixed, on which the wheel turns.]

552. He neither directs the sense-organs
to their objects, nor detaches them from
these, but stays like an unconcerned
spectator. And he has not the least re-
gard for the fruits of actions, his mind
being thoroughly inebriated with drinking
the undiluted elixir of the Bliss of Atman.

[ For ^r^^ in the last line of the Sloka. there
}S another reading SEfR^ which should be trans-
lated as " including all minor joys." ]

fv

553. He who, giving up all such con
siderations as this is a fit object of raedi
tation and this is not, lives as the Abso
lute Atman, is verily Shiva Himself, ane
he is the best among Knowers of Brahman

[ Fit object — and is therefore to be welcomec
while the other is to be shunned. ]

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 24 1

554. Through the destruction of the
supervening adjuncts, the perfect Knowcr
of Brahman merges himself in the One
Brahman without a second — which he had
been all along, becomes very free even
while living and attains the consumma-
tion of his life.

[Merges himself in Brahma7i which. all alon^

( 9^ ?T^ a^'^frT )-r-Quoiation from Brihadi-
ran^aka IV. iv. 6. ]

<T^^ agn%^^^: ^^T 9[#^ ^VlT\ HT^XH

555. As an actor, when he puts on the
dress of his role or when he does not, is
always a man, so the perfect Knower 01
Brahman is always Brahman and nothing
else.

556. Let the body of the Sannyasin
who has realised his identity with Brah-
man, become withered and fall anywhere
like the leaf of a tree, (it is of little con-
sequence to him, for) it has already been
burnt by the fire of Knowledge.

[ Bur fit etc. — Hence lie need not even care about
the creuiatit^n of the body after death. ]

■24^ VIVEKACHUDAM ANS

557. The sage who always lives in the
Reality—^Brabman—as Infinite Bliss, the
One without a second, does not depend.
Mpou the customary considerations of
place, time etc. for giving up this mass of
skin, Sesh and filth.

[He may give up the body any Lime he pleases^
tor H has cerved its purpose„ ]

558,. For, the giving up of the body i&
?iot L-iberatio-u, nor that of the staff and
water-bcwly. but Liberation consists in the;
destruction of the heart's knot, which is

Nescience.

\ Staff and water -bowl—\}ci<s^ insignia ol a San-
nyasin. Mere outward giving up is Kotbii:\g ; they
mast have no place in the mind.

Heart's, knot — to bind as it were the Chit of
Absolute Knowledge to the inert body. ]

VlVEKACnUDAMANl' 245

S$9. If a leaf falls in a small stream, or
a river, or a place consecrated by Shiva, or
in a crossing of roads, of what good or
or evil is that to the tree ?

[ Places of varying purity are meant. ]

^^^ %^^^^ "^^^^ ^n^'

560. The destruction of the body,-
organs, Pranas and Biiddhi is like that of
the leaf or llovver or fruit (of a tree). It
does not affect the Atman, the Reality,
the Embodiment of Bliss — ,vliich is one's
true nature. That survives, like the tree.

[Pranas — Viial forces. Buddhi — ihe delermina-
tive faculty, mviy slaiui here for the mind itself. ]

561. Tiie Srutis, by setting forth the
real nature of the Atman in the words,
"the Embodiment of Knowledge" etc.,
which indicate Its Reality, speak of the
destruction of the superve'iing adjuncts
merelv.

[" Kmdodimen/ of ftrtoia'edge" ^fc. — Brihadi-

244 VIVEKACHUDAMANI

ranyakalV. v. 13: "As a lump of salt is without
interior or exterior, whole, one homogeneous salt
mass, so is verily this Alinan, O Maitreyi, the
Embodiment of Knowledge which assumes dif-
ferentiations through contact with the elements and
ceases to have them when these elements are des-
troyed (by liluinination ). After this dissolution It
has no distinct name." It should be noted that the
passage in the original is so worded as to confuse
an ordinary enquirer, as it did Maitreyi actually.
Then Yajnavalkya had to explain that he meant
only the destruction of the snpervetiing adjuncts,
and not that of the Atman— the Eternal Reality —
which ever is.

Supervening adjuncts — Such as water in which
the sun is reflected, or the rose which casts its
reflection on the crvsial, or the air which produces
a bubble on the smfacc of water. When these
Upadhis are removed th<-' special differentiations
cease to exist, but the piimip.il thing remains as
it was. ]

562. The Sruti passage, * 'Verily is this
Atman immortal, nry dear,*' uientioiis tb«
immortality of the Atman in the midst of
perishable things that are subject to modi-
^cation.

[ ^;j//z—Biihad^ianyaka IV. v. 14; "Verily \%

vivekaciiudamani 245

this Alman immorul, my dear, iiidestruciible by
Its very nature " J

563. Just as stone, tree, grass, paddy,
and busk etc., when burnt, are reduced to
to earth (ashes) only, even so the whole
objective universe comprising the body,
organs, Pranas, Manas and so forth, are!
when burnt by the fire of Realisation, re-
duced to the Paramatman (Supreme Self).

{Hmk: Another reading for g^y^ is ^j^^*^ ;
Kata IS a kind of straw, and the otner word means
cloth. ]

564, As darkness which is distinct
(from sunshine) vanishes in the sun's
radiance, so the whole objective universe
is merged in Brahman.

^r: 5j\j v:m o^>jt o^iTf^cr '^^m ^z^i 1

565. As when a jar is broken, the space
enclosed by it becomes palpably the limit-

246 VIVEKACHUDAMANf

Ifiss Space, so when the superv^eaing ad-
juncts are destroyed, the Knower of Brah*
man verily becomes Brahman Itself.

^rt #^ ^m %H ^# ^^ ^^ ^ !

566. As riiilk pomed into milk, oil into
oil, and water into water, becomes united
and one with it, so the sage who has
realised the Atman becomes one in the
Atman.

[Compare Katha Upanishad IV. 15, Also,
Muudaka 111. ii. 8. ]

567. Realising thus the isolation that
• comes of diseiubodiedness and becoming,

eternally identified with the Absolute
Reality, Brahman, the sage no longer

■snffeis iransmigration.

568. For his bodies, consisting of Nes-
cience etc., having been burnt by the
realisation of the identity of Jiva and
Brahman, he becomes Brahman Itself, and
how can the Brahman ever have rebirth?

TlVEKACIIUDAMANl ^47

[ Bodies Nescunce etc. — The three bodies a^e

causal, subtle ami gross. The first consists of
Nescience; the second of seventeen things — five
-sensory organs, five motor organs, five Pranas (01,
.according- to some, five fine; elements or Tauinllrasj,
Manas and Buddhi ; and the last, consisting of the
gross elements, is what we see. Tliesc three
bodies make up the five Koshas or sheaths ::om
the Anandamaya dov/n to the Aanamaya- The
Atman is beyond them all. ]

569. Bondage and liberation, which are \
vconjured up by Maya, d-o not really exist
in tlie Atman, one's Reality, as the ap-
pearance arid exit of the snake do not
abide in the rope which suffers no change.

^^I^^I^^^FR: ^T^'trt ^x ^%^ ^frT: lllit^G

570. Bondage and liberation may bt
.talked of when there is the presence or
absence of a cover ng veil. But there cai'
"be no covering veil for tb" Brahiriiin,
M^l'hich is always uncovered for want of a
second thing bes'des Itself. If there oe,
|he Non-duality of Brahman will Le contra

24^ VIVEKACHUDAMANI

dieted, and the Srutis can never brook
duality.

[ Sriiiis......dzmliiy — e. g. " One only without a

second," (Chhdndogya VL ii. i), "There is nc
duality in Brahman " ( Katha IV. ii), and so on. ]

571. Bondage and liberation are attri-
butes of the Buddhi which ignorant people
falsely snperimpose on the Reality, as the
covering of the eyes by a cloud is trans^-
ierred to the sun. For this Immutable
Brahman is Knowledge Absolute, the One
without a second, and unattached.

5%:\?r s^t^cTt ^t g r^^ ^'^^'> iiX^^ii

572. The idea that bondage exists, and
the idea that it does not exist, with refer-
ence to the Reality, are both attributes of
the Buddhi merely, and never belong to»
the eternal Reality — Brahman.

^^m m^m ^$\ ^^^m^x ^ ^rhr i

VIVEKACHUDAMANI 249

573. Hence this bondage and liberation
are created by Maya, and are not in the
Atman. Hov/ can {here be any id^a ot
limitation with regard to the Supreme
Truth, which is without parts, without
activity, cahi:, unimpeachable, taintless,
and One without a second, as there can be
none with regard to the infinite sky?

574. There is neither death nor birth,
neither bound nor striving for freedom,

neither seeker after liberation nor liberated

— this is the ultimate truth.

[This is a verbatim quotation from the Amrita-
bindu Upanishad, Sloka 10. There is not much
difftrence between ' Siiiihaka 'and ' Mumukshu.' So
long as there is mind, there are all these dis-
tinctiotis, but the mind itself is a creation of
Avid V 4. Hence the highest truth is that in which
the«e is no lelalivity. ]

575. I ha\e to-day repeatedly revealed
to thee, as to cue's own son, this excel*

SSQ VrVEKACMUDAMANI

lent and profound secret, which k the in-
most piirport of all Vedanta — the crest of
the Vedas — -considering thee an aspirant
after liberation, purged of the taints of
this Iron Age, and of a mind free Irora
•desires.

[ Secret — The discrimination between the Real
.and unreal, which is hidden from the vulgar man.
The teacher's address is finished here. ]

576. Hearing these words of the Guru,
the disciple out of reverence prostrated
liimself before him, and with his permis-
vsiou went his way, freed from bondage.

577. And the Guru, with his mind
^steeped in the ocean of Existence and
Bliss Absolute, roamed, verily purifying
the whole world, — ^all differentiating ideas
banished from his mind.

578. Thtis bv wav of a dialocnie between
jthe teacher and the disciple, has the na-

'VIVKKACHUDAMANI -35!

ttire of the Atman been ascertained ior
the easy comprehension of seekers af;fcr
liberation.

579. May those Sannyasins who are
seekers after liberation, who have purged
themselves of all taints of the mind by the
observance of the prescribed methods, who
are averse to worldly pleasures, who are of
pacified minds, and take a delight in the
Sruti,, appreciate this sahitary teaching !

[ Sannyasins — The word * Yati ' may simply
mean ' one who is struggling for Realisaiion." So
also in Siokas 556 and 567.

Prescribed methods — Secondary or indirect (such
as, saoilices etc.) and primary or direct (such as.
control of the senses and mind etc.). ]

.530. For those who- are afflicted, in th^

252 VrVEKACHUDAMANI

way of the world, by the burning pain due
to the sunshine of threefold misery; who
through delusion wander about in a desert
in search of water; — for them here is the
trhimphant message of Sankara pointing
cut, within easy reach, the comforting
ocean of nectar — the Brahman, the One
without a second — to lead them on to
liberation !

[ Threefold misery — the ddhyd/mika (those per-
tau/Uig to ti)e body and mind, such as pain,
anguish etc.) the ddhidaivika (those coming from
divine visitations or scourges of Nature, such as.
cyclone, earthquake etc.), and the ddhibhauiiha
(those due to other creatures on earth).

V/ander water — are lured by the prospect of

happiness from transitory things, which, as in the
case of a mirage, exhaust them the more.

Easy reach — for tliis Mine of Bliss is tkeir very
ntttuie. h is no external thing to be acquired.
They h;»ve simply to realise that they are already
That.

On io liberation — Uy inducing them to take away

iihcir .'sell-JTnpo.sed ve').

The solemn cudcnce of the Sirdulavikridiia
metre makes a fating termination to the prophetw
discouise. ]

INDEX.

[ The figures indicate the Sloka number. ]

Aspirant's qualifications 16-7

— questions 49
Atman — Its nature 106-7, 124-36, 213-25, 531-5.
560-2
— Its bondage apparent 194-202
Avidyi, Avyakia, or M^i 108-9

— to be destroyed by the Realisalioa of

Brahraan no
— its components, the Gunas 110

Blissful Sheath disci iminated 206-9

Bondage and its effects 137-8

— is caused l)y the Veiling and Projecting
Powers of Maya 1 4 1-4

Brahman : lis nature 237-40

— niediialion on It must be constant 321-30
— how to realise It 377-97, 407-Z2

Calmness or Sama defined 22

Causal body 120

Concentration : its means 367-71

Desires bt ing the cause of Samsara are to be

upjooted 311-20
Devotion : its importance; new definitions 31-2

>f.t>

II

i>i5c'^ple realises and s^lates his experience ^yg-^ti^
— how he is instructed to live after this 521-5^
'Discrimination defined 20
I)ream-state 98-9
Duahty is nowhere 398-404, 464-73, 478

F'goism described IG4-5

—ibeing the chief obstacle to -Reaii^^-iioi*'
should be shunned 298-310

f.lemenls, gross and subtle 73-4

Kaith defined 25
Forbearance defined 24

Gross body and its objects described 72-4, 88, 90- r
— attachment to these condemned 75-87

Idenlification with gross and subtle bodies 10 be
sliunned 287-97

—its evil effects 331-40

—-ceases after realisation 413-7
Ignorance is the root of bondage 146

— is destroyed by discriuiination 147

Knowledge Slieath discritninated 284-206

Libetaiion a most rare thing 2

— is self-realisation, not scriptural cradiuoa of

ceretnouials 6-7, 56-60
—should be earnestly soughts through a

teacher 8-iO
— its means 46, 82
— to \)^felt inwardly by oneself 474-7
Liberation-in-iife : its characteristics 425-41,

526-9, 536-59
Material Sf>eiHH t.kt>t'fimtnatec! 354-64

Ill

MdjA — sec under A vii^ yd
AHeirai Sheath disciiminaied 167-83
Mind or * inner organ ' ( Aniarikarana } an(t iCff-
various fuiiclions 93-4
— its seat 103

Ntrvikalpa SamSdhi is the way to Realisation 34i-6(r*

Org^ans of knowledge and action 92

Tranas and their functions 95, 102

I'riirabdha : does it exist for a man of Realisa

tion 443-63
Profound sleep ( Sushupti ) 121
Frojecling Power of Rajas and its offshoots in-2,

140'

Realisation conges through discrimination; not
work 1 1-5
—its ineans 18-9, 69-70
—its results 418, 421-24
— leads to liberation 61-5
— neglect in it is suicide 4-5
— no more rebirth after it 563-74
Djspassion ( Vairigya ) defined 21
— its culmination 424
— its impoi lance 29-30

— leads to renunciation 372-73 and ultiniatelj'
to I'eace 419
Oispassion and Realisation conduce to libera^
tion 374-6

Samsira compared to a tree 145

— how destroyed 148
Sattva, pure and mixed, and their functiosis 1X7-9
.Seif-co<i(rol 01 DamA defined 23

I

IV

SeU-exertion : its importance 51-5, 66
Self-settledness or Samidbina defined 26
Self-witbdrawal or Uparati defined 23

— its culmination 424.
Sheaths (five) of the Atman 125, 149-50

— should be discriminated to reveal the Atman
151-3, 210-1
Subtle body 96-7

— is merely an instrument of the Atman which
is unaffected 99-101
Superimposilion and liovv to remove it 267-86

Teacher: his qualifications 33

— how he should be approached and questioned

34-40
— how he comforts and encourages the dis-
ciple 41-7, 50, 67 8
''Thou art TIjat" explained 241-53
— medilalion on this advised 254-63
— result of lliis meditation 264-6
Three rare boons 3

Undifferenlialed— See Avidyi.

Universe from Avyakia down to sense-objectS is
Not-Self and iht;irfore unreal 122-3
— is not apart from Brahman 226-36, 405-6

Veiling: Power of lamas and its effects 113-6, t:^g
Vital Sheath discrnninaied R65-6

' V/aking slate 88-9

Work but purifies ihe mind is

Yearning lor iiberaiion defined 27

nRRATA

Pago

Line

Ff)r

Read

no

19

repudiaies

rcpmiiate

112

6

>J^t7i

^HlVl

123

5

t^im

^^q%^^

125

7

'^^

'ki

131

3

subtle

subtle body

!t

II

identifications

idenitficatiori

133

6

^i\'A^'

^Jiq-^:

139

20

two for by

two, for

>»

25

^'^3r5?

Jti<(5^

140

II

sense-

the

>>

21

mV

^-

143

7

^m

^Tf^

J)

^9

5T*'i?T '^m^

V^rf^^^

>»

20
last

^m r{m

149

^Nr5<mT

HT^r^TCr

150

13

^rT^lr-

^T^lrt

152

12

T^r 3T^

T2fr5T5T

J»

18

covering

that covering

153

8

had

has

5>

17

their

the

154

19

this

these

>>

20

secondary mani-

two (knower

festation

and known)

157

6

Sannyasins

Sannyasin

j>

• 14

in

as

>>

15

oscillalion

oscillatiojis

,-;■>

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